Three's A Crowd
by RedShadowThief
Summary: AU. Bakura & Marik living the good life and occasionally tormenting Bakura's younger brother Ryou and his friends. Mika is their partner in crime. These are their adventures. M for drug use/curse words. Eventual/slight Bakura x OC & some Marik x OC Now complete!
1. Chapter 1

Hello, here is something that's been simmering in my brain for years. This is the introduction to the relationship between the three :) Thanks for reading!

I own nothing. The characters are property of their respective owners. I'm not making any money off of this.

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><p>"Who the fuck is laying on my leg …?" The only response to the question that hung in the air was a masculine grunt and a slight shift in weight.<p>

"That hardly makes it any better …" No response this time, so the girl pulled and rolled herself over to the left, away from the too-warm body to her right.

Just a little bit more and she would be comfortable, waves of sleep were still lapping at her brain as she pushed a pillow away from the space she so coveted.

**Thud.**

"What the _fuck_?"

The question hung in the air, half shouted from the throat of one angry looking Yuichi Bakura, well just _Bakura_, he was never one for formalities.

The young man stood up from his place on the floor to see his bed overrun with invaders, if his vision did not fail him in the dim lighting – which it never did – he could make out the peachy face of one Mika Koyama and one Marik Ishtar spread out over his king size bed.

He ran through the various ways that he could give them a rude awakening, and had just about settled on one when a loud crash of thunder broke the silence of the early morning. He hardly blinked at the noise, but Mika jumped six inches off the bed, twisting left and landing on top of Marik who let out a loud gasp of air followed by a groan.

"What the hell are you doing in my bed, Marik?" Mika frowned, her eyes not used to the darkness of the room. She could tell it was Marik, however, because of the string of obscenities falling dramatically from his lips.

"I'm not in _your_ bed, what are you talking about? I'm in –"

"You're _both_ in **my**bed."

Since they had both sat up so straight so suddenly, Bakura took the opportunity to regain his rightful place on the bed before staring pointedly at Mika, "Explain."

Her navy blue colored eyes had finally focused to the dim lighting of the room and she could make out his messy white hair sticking out at impossible angles, "Well, you see … it's thundering. I was sleeping on the couch, but the wind was making the trees scrape the windows. It might have even scared you."

"Not likely," he interjected, his eyelids starting to close again, but he snapped them open remembering Marik was in his bed too. "What's your excuse?"

Marik shrugged, pushed Mika out of his way and rolled over, pulling the covers over himself again, "Everyone else was doing it."

"Does this mean I can stay?" Mika asked as she raked her fingers through her long brown hair, she was already making herself comfortable at Bakura's side when he gave his approval, her eyelids shut tight.

He rolled over onto his back and silently wondered if he had to wake up this way _every_ Sunday morning.

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><p>Review ... Please?<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

_Here we are_

_And I can't think from all the pills_

_Hey_

_Start the car and take me home_

_Here we are_

_And you're too drunk to hear a word I say_

_Start the car and take me home_

_Just tonight I will stay and well throw it all away_

_When the light hits your eyes_

_It's telling me I'm right_

_And if I_

_I am through_

_Then it's all because of you_

_Just tonight_

Just Tonight by The Pretty Reckless

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><p>The skyline was blurry as she leaned over the railing of the skyscraper. She was not sure how they had managed to get up there unnoticed. Then again, he was <em>Bakura<em>. He could do anything, right?

"Mika, get away from …" The rest of his words were lost in an incoherent slur, his fingers were much more nimble than his tongue and he managed to grip her arm and pull her away from the ledge.

"Aw Bakura, I want to see the lights!" Her voice came out in a shrill whine that made his head spin for a moment.

"You want to kill yourself."

"What? No, Bakura, you don't understand!" Mika Koyama pulled her arm free from Bakura's grip and crossed her arms, "The _pills_."

She said it like it was the answer to everything. Obviously the pills that Marik had given her were the reason that everything seemed to glow in the haze of smog and neon lights that was Domino City at night.

"Listen, you're making my head hurt," he paused to rub his temples and she pouted at him. Her pupils were twice their normal size and her navy blue irises were eclipsed by the darkness. She looked like an alien. She looked sort of beautiful. Somewhere inside his coherent mind Bakura told himself to punch Marik the next time he saw him.

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><p>"Whoa … how did we get back in the car?"<p>

She was starting to come down. Bakura had quite the time getting her down fifty flights of stairs and down the tower of a building that she had insisted he help her climb. He was sitting in the driver's seat of his midnight blue Mitsubishi Lancer. There was a beer in his hand.

"I carried you for the most part," he took a swig of his beer and carefully peered over at her, making sure not to move his head too quickly and risk getting the spins.

"Thanks, ugh … I think I might throw up." She cringed and held her head in her hands, "Can we get out of here … I need to get to bed."

He fished his keys out of his jeans and started the car.

She smiled at him, "I love you." The sound of her voice was lost to the loud rumble of Bakura's car engine.

"What?" He glanced over at her again, his deep brown eyes hazy from mixing alcoholic beverages all night. He gripped the wheel and put the car in drive.

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><p>"What are we doing at your place?"<p>

Bakura looked over at Mika, her light brown hair created a frizzy halo around her unnaturally pale face. She looked like she had crawled out of a tomb. There was no way in hell that he could have taken her to her parents looking like that. Not to mention the fact that they didn't even know that she was out.

"You're a wreck," he grumbled, unbuckling his seat belt and pulling himself out of the car. When she didn't follow suit he stumbled over to her side of the car and managed to drag her out of the car.

"I think I might throw up," she warned again. Her navy eyes looked up and caught his dark chocolate gaze looking right back at her. The dark circles under his eyes were illuminated by the porch light. If she had been the romantic type, she might have leaned up and kissed him.

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><p>Mika put her hands against the wall to keep her path steady, Bakura was right in front of her and she followed him dutifully to the bathroom.<p>

He flicked the light on and she instantly felt the bile rise in her throat as her too-dilated pupils took in too much light. After a moment the burning subsided and she found that she was leaning over the toilet bowl.

Bakura was cussing at her, but she couldn't really hear him.

She wasn't sure if she was drunk or still high, but she couldn't feel herself choking up the contents of her stomach. It was like she was watching it happen to someone else.

"Get in the bath; I'll get you some clothes."

The pipes rumbled and Bakura slowly stepped over her still retching form.

She followed his orders with slow precision, deciding that the best way to not make more of a mess of herself was to move at a snail-like pace.

Somewhere in the home a door slammed and heavy footsteps made their way down the hall. The footsteps stopped out in front of the door to the bathroom, but Mika was too busy shivering under the hot water to notice.

Marik poked his head in and cringed, "You need to learn how to handle yourself Mika."

She glanced up at him and he waggled his eyebrows before a pale hand pulled his head out of the bathroom. There was a light thud of Marik's back hitting the wall and then the shuffle of his boots disappearing down the hall to the room he stayed in when Ryou and Bakura's father was away on business.

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><p>And just like that the next thing that Mika was aware of was lying on her stomach on a mattress that was too soft and too firm at the same time. Her arm was asleep and when she finally focused her eyes on the only light source in the room she realized that it was well past two in the morning.<p>

"_Fuck!_"

Her exclamation into the dark caused the body next to her to stir and suddenly she realized that she was not alone in her bedroom with a really bad headache and lingering memories of a sad, sad dream. No. She was in bed with someone. Stupid Marik and stupid Bakura – how the fuck could they just let her go home with some guy?

Her pissed off expression faded away when she saw who was staring back at her. Bakura's hair was askew and his eyes were barely open, his lip was pulled back in a sneer and he was scratching at his nether regions.

"What the fuck are you complaining about?"

She smiled, although because of the burning in the back of her throat it must have looked more like a grimace than anything. He slammed his head back down into the pillow and she rubbed her forehead before giving in to sleep once again, satisfied with how everything had worked out.

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><p>Bakura cracked his back, the sickening sound of his spine cracking a sharp contrast to the relief that flooded through his torso. He had been in an awkward position for the last three hours, what with Mika pressing him up against the wall while shivering violently. He had no idea why he had left her alone with Marik for those few minutes at the party.<p>

There was the start of the grey dawn and the light that filtered in through the blinds made Mika's face look amazingly inviting. Her lips had regained some of their smooth redness and her skin was slightly flushed thanks to the fact that she was currently laying beneath every blanket that Bakura owned.

She groaned something that sounded like his name, but he could not be sure as he had begun to drift back to sleep.

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><p>She woke up again six hours later; her face was wet from the drool that had spilled out of her mouth. She was going to hear about that later. The smell of coffee wafted to her nose and her throat craved the soothing heat that it would provide.<p>

Just as she had sat up and reached out for the mug she heard the door that connected to the bathroom open. Her eyes opened wide as she saw Bakura step out from behind the door, his hair damp from a shower and his towel wrapped around his shoulders.

His nether regions were conspicuously naked.

She took in a huge gulp of the bitter coffee, choking on how hot it was. No, she was just choking. She grabbed at her throat and sputtered as the burning liquid spilled down her chin and slid down her throat simultaneously. Her eyes were squeezed shut as she tried to focus on breathing through her nose.

"You're drinking my coffee."

Her head was spinning as she glanced up at her friend; he had wrapped the towel around his waist and was taking a deep swig from the mug he had picked up. She pulled the covers off of herself and stumbled to the bathroom, her heartbeat in her ears from her near death experience.

"… like she's never seen a penis before."

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><p>By the time that Mika had dragged herself out of the bathroom looking halfway presentable Bakura had gotten dressed. He was lazily picking his nails with his Swiss army knife when he looked up and saw her standing at the entrance of the room, her fingers running through her hair.<p>

She looked like the life had slowly begun to seep into her. His t-shirt barely hit below her hips and she had been both delighted and disappointed that Bakura had given her a pair of his boxers to cover up. Her pupils had returned to normal and Bakura couldn't help the stirrings he felt.

"What're you looking at?" Mika asked, raising her hands above her head and cracking her neck. Bakura was about to say something when there was a knock on the bedroom door and Ryou poked his head through, "Ah, Mika I have your clothes here. I washed them for you."

She smiled brightly at Ryou as she took the small pile from him. Marik appeared behind him a moment later, his amethyst eyes glowing with mischief, "How you feeling Mika?"

She frowned at him, "I feel like World War III just happened inside my body." She ran her free hand over her stomach, wincing. He rolled his eyes as Ryou exited the room, his cell phone was ringing somewhere in the kitchen. "Oh, I'm sure it's not that bad. I gave you some quality shit," he stated matter-of-factly, leaning against the door frame.

Bakura shifted and the bed creaked at his movement making the two move their glances over to him. Bakura was glaring pointedly at Marik; he stalked forward flexing his free hand, the other still clutching his Swiss army knife.

He pushed his way past Mika and grabbed Marik by the neck, "If you ever even _think_ about giving her those pills again, I **will** kill you where you stand." Marik looked like he was about to object to Bakura's demand, but the white-haired man narrowed his eyes even further and gave Marik's neck a tighter squeeze before releasing him.

Mika gave them both a weird look before locking herself back in the bathroom to change into her own clothes.

"Geez Bakura, why don't you just make her your girlfriend already ..." Bakura pulled a face at Marik and flung his Swiss army knife at his head. Had Marik not moved the knife end might have hit him right in the neck – unfortunately for his father's wall the knife stuck firmly below a family portrait.

"If you're done playing with knives and threatening your best friend, can you drive me home now? I need to sneak in before they know that I was gone." Bakura turned just in time to catch the keys that Mika had thrown at him, "Sure thing."

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><p>Review ... Please?<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

_Lots of love to all of my pretty reviewers, you know who you are and you know that I LOVE you! Enjoy lovelies :)_

_Extra special thanks to **CraftyLion**!_

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><p><em>My first kiss went a little like this<em>

_And twist_

_And twist_

_Well my first kiss went a little like this_

_And twist_

_And twist_

3OH!3 feat. Ke$ha – My First Kiss

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><p>*<em>Flashback<em>*

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><p>"Mika, you've been summoned to the office. Take your things, class is almost over anyway." Mika looked up from her notes, "Thank you, Mr. Fujiyama."<p>

She hurriedly stuffed her binder into her backpack and stepped toward the desk where her teacher had left the summons slip. After stepping into the hallway she realized that the summons had not come from the main office, but rather the Physical Education office. That was _strange_.

She adjusted the bag on her shoulder and started on her way toward the PE office, trying to decipher the sloppy script on her summons slip. She had just turned the corner and out into the open air when an arm reached out and swung her off of her original path. Mika's first reaction was to struggle, but the voice that filled her ear shocked her to bits.

"Quiet Mika, there is no need to panic," the velvet smooth voice belonged to none other than her childhood friend's older brother – the mythical, magical, occasionally malevolent Bakura.

She turned around to see him smirking at her, as though laughing at some yet untold joke. "I have to go – I was." He cut her off with a short laugh, "You were summoned to the PE office – by me."

Her face contorted in absolute confusion, Bakura had never wanted to have anything to do with her or with Ryou, especially on school grounds. He was the cool guy who excelled academically and in sports but thought nothing of it and maintained the attitude and reputation of someone who just didn't give a shit.

He was every girls dream, every parent's nightmare, and he was standing there smiling at Mika with his backpack slung over his shoulder and a plastic bag of brownies in his left hand.

His right arm was still draped across Mika's shoulder, his fingers gently tapping along her collarbone. It took her a moment too long to realize that she was gawking and she promptly shrugged his arm off. "What did you summon me for?"

Her face quickly reconfigured itself from an expression of awe to an expression of annoyance; her left hand came to rest on her hip. She was a quiet girl, but known particularly for her inability to take shit from anyone. He laughed again and waggled the bag of pastries in front of her face, "It's your sixteenth birthday."

Her façade quickly dropped and she gave him a look of genuine confusion – in the six years that she had known Ryou (and by default, Bakura himself) he'd never once said anything that would make their current conversation normal. In fact, she hadn't really seen Ryou outside of school for almost a year now as their overall friendship had dwindled – Ryou liked to play card games with a new group of friends and Mika couldn't bring herself to sit through five minutes of it.

"Well there's no need to be rude, it's not like I haven't known you for years now," he rolled his eyes impatiently. Mika tilted her head to the side and opened her mouth to speak when he grabbed her arm roughly and pulled her toward a staircase that led to the roof of the school.

He had pulled her all the way up the staircase before she was finally able to speak, "I'm sorry, I really don't understand what is going on here …?" He glanced at her with a crooked grin, "Why Mika, we're having a little birthday party for you right now. Don't tell me you'd rather spend your time _in **class**_?" His voice was even more delicious when he was making sense.

She smiled at him tentatively and followed him to where he had sat down, the sun was shining brightly at an angle and the air conditioning unit that Bakura was leaning up against barely managed to cast a sizable shadow. "So, you made me brownies?"

He grinned devilishly at her, completely disregarding her incredulous, skeptical expression. "Oh yes, I made you some very special birthday brownies." He opened up the bag and handed one of the perfectly cut squares to her. She examined it, but didn't find anything immediately off-putting about them. He pulled another out for himself and took a hearty bite.

She watched him before shrugging, "Okay, I'll bite." She bit off a rather large piece and chewed tentatively. It wasn't until her second bite that she noticed the slightly off flavor, something that the chocolate just didn't completely mask. She turned to Bakura, completely wide-eyed her jaw continued to chew only because she was too stunned at her own stupidity to be responsive just yet.

Bakura was half-way through his second brownie when he noticed her leering at him, "What's your problem, don't you know you're not supposed to eat with your mouth open?"

On instinct she swallowed hard before realizing what she'd done, "Bakura, what the fuck is in these?" He raised a brow and a smile melted back into his features, smoothing the remainder of the lines from his face. "Why Mika, I did tell you that these were very special brownies, didn't I?"

Mika gagged, throwing the tiny remainder of the slice he'd given her at him, "What the FUCK Bakura?" He moved his head to dodge the flying crumbs and raised a brow at her, "Oh come on, don't tell me you're that fucking innocent."

Her navy blue eyes narrowed even further and she made to stand up, but his next sentence made her sit right back down. "Look, you already ate it. And you're not going to be able to go home for another three hours. And you have about an hour before it starts working."

She sat herself back down roughly, her stomach growled with hunger and she blushed embarrassed that it was so loud or that her only option for food lay in Bakura's lap. "So you'll stay with me?" His hand was extended and she'd never seen a boy look at her so sincerely.

It obviously didn't help that he was drop dead gorgeous and paying attention to her for the first time since he shoved her into the sandbox at the playground five years ago.

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><p>A bell rang and suddenly Mika couldn't contain her giggles. They sprang from her throat unbidden but not completely unwelcome. She had been sitting there with Bakura for almost an entire hour and twenty minutes waiting for what she had ingested to take effect and had started to grow quite bored. Bakura had tried to get her to play twenty questions but she had shot him down each time, trying very hard to remain upset with him.<p>

Truth be told this was the first time that Mika had done anything truly reckless, and it felt kind of good, in that rebellious teen sort of way. And now the laughter bubbled forth – never in the history of high school had a bell been so absolutely hilarious.

Bakura had even joined into her laughter and that sent a chill down her spine. She could feel the vibrations of his laughter from where she was reclining on his chest. She hadn't even noticed when she'd gotten so very cozy with him, but at the moment she didn't really care. If anything, she wanted to be closer.

As her laughter began to subside she was clutching her ribs, gasping for air. Maybe it was because there was no oxygen in her brain at the moment. Or maybe it was the fact that she had eaten more than one brownie even after Bakura warned her that it might be too much. Or maybe there was some sort of repressed sexual tension between them. Or maybe she was just making excuses.

Whatever the reason, the fact of the matter is that at that very moment she wanted to kiss Bakura very, very badly and nothing was going to stop her. Not that he even tried to. She licked her lips and slung an arm around his neck to pull herself more properly into her lap before kissing him square on the mouth, his lips still half open from laughing.

If she was in her right mind, Mika would have noticed the jovial glint in Bakura's eye. Or the fact that he had helped pull her into his lap. Or maybe she would have remembered that today was an early day at Domino High and the bell that had been so hilarious to her was actually the final dismissal bell.

Once her lips met his, none of that would have mattered though. She felt a rush of excitement, a tingle deep in her stomach and a flutter in her heart. Bakura, on the other hand, felt Mika's ass in his left hand and the side of her breast in his right. Oh, and he might have noticed some heat in his loins.

It wasn't until they were completely engulfed in the shade of the AC unit and Bakura's cell phone wouldn't stop buzzing that they were drawn out of their impromptu make-out. Mika's school shirt was unbuttoned and the section of her neck that Bakura had exposed was purple and red from his sucking. His own outfit was a little disgruntled also, his shirt was unbuttoned and there were little red marks here and there from Mika's nails or love bites.

One glance at her cell phone sent Mika spiraling down from her high; her blood ran cold as she realized what time it was and where she was supposed to be.

"Hello? What do you want - ?" Bakura was cut off by a very similar voice. Mika knew that voice, although the tone of the voice was radically different than from when she last heard it. Ryou was pissed and he was yelling at Bakura, who had a faintly amused look on his face. "Yeah, she's with me – "

He was cut off again and Mika tuned out the faint yelling coming from Bakura's phone to continue reading her text messages. One from her mom asking where she was; one from her dad asking her if she had made plans after school with friends; one from each of the four friends that she walked home with after school; and three from Ryou, all frantically wondering why she had failed to show up to the surprise party that all of her friends had been planning for weeks now.

She wiped some spit from the corner of her mouth as she thought back; everyone had been dropping tons of hints for her not to make plans on her birthday. They were all going to go over to her house so that they could hang out because she really only wanted something low-key. Fuck. They had been planning a birthday party for her. School had let out early today. Fuck. Bakura seemed to be enjoying the increasingly pissed off look on her face, and she pushed herself out of his lap, landing hard on the asphalt rooftop but not caring about the scrapes that she would be sure to have on her legs.

"Fine, fine – look just tell them that she was with me because you needed more time to set up or something. Say that we got stuck after class. Whatever; I'll bring her right now."

Mika was standing now, brushing away the dirt from her skirt and readjusting her uniform, especially trying to make sure that her neck was fully covered. She had just pulled her backpack up onto her shoulder when Bakura hung up the phone and smiled at her.

She leered at him and turned sharply on her heel towards the stairs that they had used to come up onto the roof. "I would wait for me if I were you." She didn't even bother looking over her shoulder when she asked, "Why is that?" She heard the gravel on the roof shift as he stood up and walked toward her, the crunch of each step making her tense a little bit more.

Fuck, wasn't weed supposed to make you relaxed?

She finally turned to look at him when he grabbed her arm, "Look Mika, I'm your ride home and your alibi," he shot her a faux concerned glance and chuckled to himself, "Unless you want to walk home and explain to your parents where you've been for the past hour and a half."

She clenched her teeth and her hands turned into fists, her nails digging into her palms. "Alright, fine. But you're so on my shit list from now on."

He laughed and slung an arm around her shoulder as he led her towards the parking lot where his car was waiting, "Oh dear little Mika, quite on the contrary. You can't hate me."

He had a devious little smirk playing on his lips as he unlocked the passenger door for her, he held it open as she entered and leaned down to look her in the eye, "I know for a fact that I'm your official first kiss, make-out, hickey – why I think this is the start of a _beautiful _friendship."

He slammed the door in her horrified face and walked around to the drivers' side, reveling in the screaming of frustration that emerged from Mika.

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><p>*<em>Present time<em>*

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><p>Mika leaned against the wall looking down at the bag of brownies in her lap with a smile on her face. She was sitting on the roof after climbing out of Bakura's window. She was waiting for him to arrive so that she could get her payback for her sixteenth birthday. Or maybe she just wanted another steamy make-out. But mostly this was vengeance for him making her a fool on her birthday two years ago.<p>

It had taken a little convincing for her to get Marik and Ryou to cancel any plans that they would have had for Bakura's 20th birthday, but that was the easy part. The hard part was getting her friends to fake her sleeping over at their house so that her parents wouldn't be calling her home tonight.

The other challenge had been convincing Bakura that he didn't need the company of one of his sure-thing girls tonight. Mika heard the door to his room open and she smiled up at the late afternoon sky. He stuck his head out of the window and whistled low as he noticed the pastries in her lap.

He snickered as he pulled himself through the window and onto the roof. "Well, well what do we have here?" He mocked as he stepped closer to her, "A birthday gift for _me_?" He did his best to look incredulous, but really he just looked ridiculous and handsome.

Mika finally looked up at him, waggling the bag in front of his face, "Why Bakura, it's just some special brownies and a very, _very_ beautiful friendship."

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><p><strong>I feel like I should add this little disclaimer here … although I am writing about a variety of drugs in this story, I have actually never used drugs before. I have friends who have experimented with quite a variety of them and so I understand their effects through them and their explanations as well as the obvious standard education we receive about drugs in school. I in no way condone drug use (especially at school) but I also don't really preach against it. My theory is that everyone is responsible for themselves and if they choose to use drugs in an environment where they will not be harming others then it's a-okay with me. The alcohol stuff I have experienced personally, so that might be why scenes that include that type of intoxication are so much more detailed. In short, do whatever you like but don't say I told you to do it, because I haven't. Xoxo, Red. <strong>


	4. Chapter 4

_I'm not the kinda girl to get messed up with you, hello_

_I'ma let you try to convince me to, hello_

Martin Sloveig & Dragonette – Hello

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><p>*<em>Flashback<em>*

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><p>She didn't know how she'd let her friends convince her that going to this party was a good idea. Mika was sitting in the corner of what had – at some point at the start of this evening – been a very well put together living room. The TV was on but couldn't be heard over the blaring music.<p>

She was staring down at her phone, scrolling through the same status updates that had been there when she had checked five minutes ago. She looked down at her black slip-on shoes and felt a bit underdressed. The girls at the party were dressed-up … well the high school version of dressed up. They were all wearing mini-skirts and platforms or tight dresses. The few that were wearing jeans were wearing obscene shirts called "crop tops" that were barely enough to cover their bras.

Mika's friends, unfortunately, fell into that particular category of girl. Mika, on the other hand, had dressed herself in black jeggings that her mother had gotten her for her birthday and a lavender tank top which was mostly hidden beneath a grey hoodie; the most provocative thing about her outfit was the deep v-neck of the sweater and the shoulder cut outs.

Mika spotted her friend Minako in the corner, holding herself against the wall as some guy she'd very likely just met gyrated on her. She couldn't help but sigh and shake her head, standing up she decided to walk out to the front yard for some fresh air.

She had taken all of three steps when some guy reached out and grabbed her. She tried to pull away without making a scene, but she heard Yuka's laughter and stopped resisting for the moment. "Where have you been hiding all night Mika?"

Yuka was very obviously drunk – or maybe high, one of the two for sure. Her skirt was pulled up and her hair was ruffled. Her boyfriend (the one who'd invited them to the party) had an arm draped around her waist and was wearing a satisfied grin on his face.

"I wanted you to meet Chiharu's new friend, his name is uh … Marik," Yuka smiled at Mika and made a suggestive look with her eyebrows.

Mika sighed, but turned to look at the boy attached to the hand that was holding her hostage. She was expecting him to be somewhat similar to Chiharu – ridiculous and a party-boy. She couldn't be sure just yet, but he looked like he might match the description.

"Hello there," he said, his amethyst colored eyes glittering down at her. Mika was trying to figure out if he was playing it cool or if he just thought that he was hot shit.

When Mika didn't reply after a moment, Yuka spoke up again, "He goes to Domino Prep, our high school's rival school."

She nodded and smiled, her navy blue eyes searching for an easy exit. "Look Marik, I'm sure you're a great guy, but I was just trying to go outside to get some fresh air – "

"Oh, that's no problem. I'll take you to the back yard. The party is going on out there too." Mika sighed, but followed him as he was still holding her wrist with his big, tan hand. She caught sight of her friend Ami on her way out and received a big grin and a wink from the girl.

Once they had reached the patio Mika took a deep breath, the house was too hot from being packed with raging teens. "Before we chat, you want me to get us something to drink?" He was being oddly polite, but Mika couldn't fault him for it, "Sure," she replied as she watched him head over to a cooler.

He'd been gone for no more than a millisecond when someone placed their hand over hers. She was leaning up against the rail of the porch because she wanted to keep her distance from the group of kids smoking pot in the middle of the patio at the picnic table. The hand had begun slowly trailing up her arm when a certain velvety voice was added to the mix.

"Hello there, Mika."

Her body stiffened momentarily, he was really close to her and she couldn't help the way that her hair stood on end. "Hello, Bakura."

"Aw, come on now Mika, don't be so cruel," she could hear the smirk in his voice. She could feel his lips brushing her ear. "Come now, is that any way to greet a friend?"

His question prompted her to turn around to face him, her navy blue eyes made to be even darker in the dim moonlight. His arms were spread wide and she found herself involuntarily submitting, hugging him stiffly. One could say that things between them had been very awkward (well, things for _Mika_) since her unexpected birthday "gift."

"The fuck is going on here? Get your own chick, bro."

Bakura turned slowly, his arm resting around her neck, "Excuse me?" Mika wanted to slink away – this was humiliating.

"I said, back off my girl." Deep inside she felt that any other girl would be happy to have these two boys seemingly arguing over who was going to – well going to do whatever it was that they seemed to think that she was going to do with them.

"I'm sorry, who the _fuck_ are you?" Bakura looked anything but sorry as he tauntingly played with the ends of Mika's hair.

Marik shoved the two drinks in Mika's unsuspecting hands and she spilled half of the liquid on the floor before she realized that these two were apparently really riled up over this.

"I'm obviously the better of the two of us."

"Really – by who's standards?"

Marik snarled and got closer to Bakura, they were inches from being chest to chest; it was obvious that they were each trying to intimidate the other. They looked like moose to her or maybe rams; whatever stupid animal that felt the need to beat a comrade senseless to impress a female.

"Oh, I know who you are now," Bakura rolled his shoulders, obviously feeling smug. "You're that loser midfielder that couldn't stop me in today's game."

Obviously this struck a nerve and Mika saw that Marik was ready to throw a punch and she wasn't drunk enough to stand on the sidelines as they beat one another senseless.

Apparently, she was drunk enough to intervene.

She haphazardly placed the two beers on the railing she had been leaning against and pushed her way between the two boys. "Hey, hey – stop it you two!"

She saw that Bakura was trembling and was about ready to think less of him when he broke out in laughter. Although this laugh was much harsher than the one that they had shared a few days ago, it still sent pleasant tingles down her spine. She desperately tried to blame the alcohol on that sensation.

It took her half a moment more to realize that Marik was laughing, too.

"Okay, what the fuck is going on?" She stepped back and peered into their faces, they were completely the opposite of what they had been just a short moment ago.

Marik reached to grab a beer from the railing, while asking Bakura, "So, do you wanna tell her, or should I?"

Mika narrowed her gaze at Bakura, who was still chuckling to himself. He opened his mouth to speak, but more laughter came bursting forth.

"Fuck you. Are you high again? Is this what boys do? God, I'm leaving."

She was about to take a step when Marik caught her under his arm, he leaned down to look at her face. His beer-soaked breath caressed her face as he explained, "Well, you see, Bakura and I have known one another for quite a few years now. I'd even go as far as to say that we're thick as thieves."

Bakura grabbed the other beer and chugged it while rolling his eyes. Marik continued his explanation, "So anyway, a week and half ago he comes and tells me about this "really cool chick" and that we should all totally hang out sometime."

He made some dramatic hand gestures while explaining and had since let go of Mika, "Anyway, we're proud subscribers to "bros before hoes" and so we wanted to make sure that you weren't just some home wrecking bitch. We decided that the best way to test it was to see how you'd react to us fighting over you."

Bakura, who'd finished his beer, decided to pipe up now, "I told him that you were totally cool and that you wouldn't be aroused by the fact that two sex beasts were about to kill one another over you. So he promised that if you passed the test you could hang out with us this weekend. He also promised that he'd supply the necessary ingredients for fun."

Marik rolled his eyes, but nodded. "Any girl who'd stand up for Bakura – "

"And keep Marik from getting into belligerent fights – "

"- is cool in my book."

Mika stared at them both in disbelief. Mostly it was disbelief aimed at herself, because these two idiots _sort of made _**sense**.

"See, I _told_ you that this was the beginning of a _beautiful friendship_," Bakura quipped, smiling self assuredly, "So, what do you say?"

She narrowed her eyes, but turned her head when she saw her friends lining up to do a keg stand – well Ami was shouting that there needed to be a wet t-shirt contest, stat. Suddenly Marik and Bakura didn't seem half bad. She offered them a tentative smile and nodded her head, "I'd say I'm about ready for shots – who's with me?"

Marik whooped and Bakura grinned as they both threw their arms around her, "What did I tell you Marik? This girl is one cool chick."

* * *

><p>*<em>Present Day<em>*

* * *

><p>"SHOTS!"<p>

Marik drunkenly lined up the shot glasses in front of them. They were pre-gaming for the going away party that they were throwing at Bakura's house (mostly because they didn't give a fuck what Bakura's father would say – even Ryou felt this way, surprisingly).

Not surprisingly, the three of them were already buzzed from the three shots that had preceded this one. They were playing what was now their favorite pre-party game – take a short every time their cell phones rang. Thanks to Ryou's girlfriend they were lining up their fourth shot in a matter of thirty minutes.

"A toast – to going off to college and spending my last few days with you losers," Bakura said, because he almost never yelled – especially when he was drunk.

"To the best friends in the world," Marik seconded, his speech already wavering on the line between slurred and acceptable.

"To the two coolest guys a girl could ever want in her life – and Ryou, too!" Mika giggled, her voice high pitched – the way it always got when she started drinking.

They had just knocked their shots back with another cell phone went off. They all looked at one another, grinning from ear to ear – "SHOTS!"

* * *

><p><strong>I think we can go ahead and officially say that I'm on a FF binge ... I'm sure y'all don't mind too much though :)<strong>

**Shout out to _CraftyLion_!**


	5. Chapter 5

_I'm in love alright, with my crazy beautiful life._

_With the parties, the disasters, with my friends all pretty and plastered._

_Every night we are down to go out, _

_Waking up on a different couch. _

_Til the next night, on the next flight._

_Yeah, I guess we're doing alright._

_Oh oh oh _

_We're falling in love_

_Oh oh oh_

_Til the suns comin' up._

_Oh oh oh_

_Just livin' a life_

_Oh oh oh_

Ke$ha – Crazy, Beautiful Life

* * *

><p>Mika Koyama was sitting on Marik's shoulders as he ran full speed up a set of stairs that led to the dorm room he shared with Bakura, all the while she was laughing in the high-pitched way she did when she was nervous and excited and happy.<p>

Bakura was right on their heels, fuming at the fact that he was left to carry her bags and that the two goons in front of him were chanting his name in a ridiculous sing-song tone.

"**Yu**ichi, Yu**i**chi, Yui**chi**, **Yu**i_chi…_!"

They rounded the last corner just as Bakura launched his keys at them; they landed on the floor in a tinkling pile that only made Mika and Marik laugh harder.

By the time that Bakura got into the room, the two were sitting on the couch smiling at him brightly. "I've told you _both_ on _several_ occasions **not** to call me _that_ name."

"But Yu-"

Bakura cut Marik off with a stern glare and Mika stifled some more giggles, "Aw come on Marik, I've only just gotten here. There's no use in making Bakura mad at us for the whole time I'm supposed to be here."

Marik shrugged and got up to use the bathroom, sighing rather dramatically as he relieved his bladder. Bakura rolled his eyes and Mika smiled up at him, "You're not mad at me, are you?"

He quirked a perfect white brow at her, his eyes seemed darker than usual and Mika felt herself staring. He blinked and sat down next to her, "No, why would I ever be mad at _you_?"

She frowned playfully, "I hate when you do that."

He leaned closer to her, his nose touching hers, "When I do what?"

She was able to contain the urge to shiver in pleasure at the sound of his voice, and instead answered him by mussing his hair, "When you make it seem like you're the most innocent person to ever walk the Earth."

He laughed and put her in a headlock, "Why _Mika_, you're absolutely hilarious. Who on Earth has ever been more innocent of _everything_ than me?"

Marik, who had walked out of the bathroom and was currently going through Mika's duffel bag, looked up and replied in a very matter-of-fact tone, "I believe the fellow's name was _Jesus_ …"

"Jesus Christ, _Marik_!"

"Ah, yes, that's him. Thanks Mika," he looked at Bakura, whose grip on Mika's head had slipped when Marik started acting like a total and complete idiot, "His name was _Jesus Ch_-"

"No, _Marik_, I mean 'Jesus Christ, get your hands off of my underwear and get your hands _out_ of my bag!"

He looked down at the article of clothing in his hands, well, if the little scrap of lace and satin could be _called_ clothing. He blushed a bit when he realized that he was holding a hot pink _thong_ in his hands, and was about to drop it when he thought better of it. "Why Mika, I didn't realize you had such grown-up undergarments."

Mika flushed pink at his comment and lunged forward to forcefully take the hot pink item out of his hands, but he held it up and she went face first into his crotch. He cackled as she lunged again, but he held her down easily with one arm while he was waving her underwear around with the other, "What did you bring a _thong_ for anyway?"

She blushed harder, and was about to reach it when Bakura ripped it out of Marik's grip. She was about ready to drop dead at the fact that not one, but _two_ boys had now put their hands all over the very private piece of clothing. Bakura was about to hand it to her when he thought better of it, grinned like the Grinch when he stole Christmas, and smirked, "Why _did _you bring a thong, Mika?"

Her navy blue eyes widened at him, his lips turned up even more into one of the rare Bakura smiles, "Well?"

She narrowed her eyes at him and ripped them from his hand, "I don't have to explain myself to you." She accentuated her statement by shoving her underwear back into her duffel bag and zipping it up tight.

"Well, well Bakura, it looks like our little Mika is growing up!" He reached down and pinched her cheeks, making an absolutely obnoxious kissy face at her.

Bakura sneered involuntarily, "I don't know if I like that."

Mika scoffed at him after swatting Marik away, "_You're _the ones that made it happen in the first place."

The boys exchanged looks with one another and Mika hoped that her bluff would hold up. How in the world would she ever be able to tell them that the whole reason she had a duffel bag full of lacy underwear was because her friends were absolutely convinced that she was sleeping with Bakura or Marik or _both of them_. They'd been ridiculous enough to each go out and buy her a lingerie set.

And lucky for her, the day they went _thongs were on sale_.

* * *

><p>Several hours later, the thong fiasco was all but forgotten and Mika was dancing her way over to the bar where Marik and Bakura were trying to get the bartender's attention. The two were dressed in slim-fitting jeans and long-sleeved button ups with the sleeves neatly rolled up. Mika had noticed the girls staring when she had walked into the night club with the two; obviously they were going to be jealous, just like everyone in high school always was. She couldn't bring herself to understand why though, she was just their <em>friend<em> and she was hardly competition compared to half of the girls in the building.

She pulled her dress down to cover more of her bottom, consequently allowing it to reveal more of her _top_. The bartender appeared out of nowhere, smiling down at her, "What can I get you, sweetheart?"

She stiffened as he referred to her; she hadn't even been calling for his attention. She felt Bakura put an arm around her shoulders as she continued to blink up at the bartender. "Two whiskey and cokes and a cranberry and vodka for the _sweetheart_," Mika shuddered at the not so subtle anger that permeated Bakura's otherwise polite request.

The bartender gave Mika one last glance and went off to prepare the order. Bakura's hand stayed firmly on her shoulder, Marik smiled down at her, "Having a girl around is so _useful_, we've been standing here for almost twenty minutes."

"Well, I'm glad my femininity could be of service," Mika said sarcastically, sticking her tongue out at Marik. He laughed and mimicked her action, continuing to shake his bottom to the beat of the music.

She had been really grateful that Marik and Bakura had gone through the trouble of getting her a fake ID for her weekend visit. The bar scene was something totally new and exciting and _much_ more appealing than the house parties that she had become accustomed to when she had first started hanging out with the boys.

The bartender came back and Bakura threw some money his way, and even though Mika couldn't see his eyes she _knew_ that he was giving him a dirty look. She ignored it and made her way over to a less populated space of the night club, she clinked glasses with each respective boy before they each took long drinks of their cocktails.

Soon the trio was working with a pretty good buzz and they were out on the dance floor moving with the crowd to the too-loud bass. Mika hadn't had so much fun in ages, but she could see that Marik and Bakura seemed to be taking turns keeping guys off of her.

When she finally had enough she pressed up against her white-haired companion (Marik had been momentarily lured away by a girl in a red dress), "Really, Bakura?"

He looked down at her, his body involuntarily reacting to her body pressed up against his. With her heels she was almost eye level with him and every time he looked down at her he caught sight of the generous swelling of her breasts. He wrinkled his straight, aristocratic nose, "What do you mean?"

She reached up and threw her arms around his neck, "You're totally twat swatting me!"

He looked like someone had just punched him in the stomach. "I'm doing no such thing, and what do you know about all that anyway?"

She could see the totally invasive question in his eyes, but she wasn't exactly prepared to share her virginity status with Bakura while they were grinding in the middle of a club.

So instead, she met his stern look with one of her own, but broke out laughing when she felt heard Marik fake grunting as he gyrated toward them. He managed to sandwich her between them before Bakura broke off and told Marik to meet him at the car in five.

* * *

><p>When Bakura had said it was time to go, Mika hadn't expected for it to be a whole ordeal. He'd apparently gone to pick out the sluttiest girl in the club to bring home. Marik had apparently taken care of that <em>business<em> at the club and so he and Mika were sleeping out on the couch so that Bakura could enjoy himself.

Marik promptly went to sleep, thanks in part to his drunkenness and in another part to the fact that he'd had a quickie in the club's bathroom. Mika, however, was stuck listening to the grunts and groans coming from the other room. Every time the girl cried out in pleasure she tried to push the pillow further into her ears.

It wasn't that she was jealous. It was that this wasn't her idea of fun. Or maybe she was jealous.

* * *

><p>The three-day weekend ended all too soon and before she knew it the trio was getting into Bakura's Mitsubishi Lancer again to make the two hour trip back into Domino.<p>

Marik was chattering away for the most part, he quite enjoyed playing road trip bingo, especially since he was usually the only one paying attention and therefore the winner by default. Mika decided to humor him this time around and was actually giving him a run for his money, Bakura, on the other hand was focused on weaving in and out of traffic.

The drive was unnecessarily awkward – like the remainder of the weekend had been – thanks to Bakura's sour mood. Mika had a sneaking suspicion that she knew _exactly_ what had irked the white-haired man, but she wasn't quite ready to forgive him just yet.

In the entirety of the two years that had passed since she and Bakura had become friends he hadn't expressed a shred of romantic or sexual interest after her birthday. He had always made a joke of it, always said that he didn't have those kind of feelings.

She distinctly remembered going to his senior prom with him and not having one issue whatsoever. Well, not an issue with _him_. Some of his ex-girlfriends had been pretty pissed, that was another story entirely.

When they finally pulled into her friend's driveway – because her parents would _never_ have allowed her to go spend a weekend with two college boys – she was relieved to get away from the awkwardness.

She hugged Marik tightly and told him that she couldn't wait for summer break to come around again so that they could all be together again. He agreed and then reminded her that next year she could be joining them at their University (she had applied in the fall and was not so patiently awaiting a response). That made her eyes light up and she hugged him again, squealing with excitement.

Bakura was a little more stiff for their goodbye, or he _was _until Mika pulled him down so that her lips could brush his ear, "I know what you were going to ask, and _yes_ I'm still a … I still have my _V-card_."

She wanted to laugh when he hugged her tighter and pressed a kiss onto the side of her head. Other than that, she avoided eye contact with him completely as she scurried up the steps to her friend's front door.

She did laugh when Bakura almost ran over their mailbox because of his self-absorbed stupor, prompting Marik to scream obscenities at him at the top of his lungs even though the car windows were completely rolled down.

Occasional humiliation aside, Mika absolutely _loved_ her friends.

* * *

><p><strong>Who cares about sleeping? I absolutely had to get a chapter of Three's a Crowd typed up before I lost my mind. I love this story ... I don't even understand my unnecessary neglect of it -.-'<strong>

**Love to all my reviewers, thank you for loving this story as much as I do :)**


	6. Chapter 6

_The arch in your eyebrows can tell the truth_

_Just imagine what your back can do,_

_and the dance floor where I do my best_

_is your, your mattress._

_I just gave myself the shivers,_

_and that's what you get when you think about her_

_And I just gave myself the shivers,_

_and that's what you get, that's what you get._

Cute is What We Aim For – Sweet Talk 101

* * *

><p>There was a distinct meaning in the way that she was sprawled out on his bed. It wasn't the typical, friendly gesture that it usually was – not to say that the gesture wasn't <em>friendly<em>. The way her hip bone was poking out through the top of her jeans made him want to bite it …

"Bakura?"

He shivered. Straight up _shivered_. Yuichi Bakura didn't shiver. But she usually didn't moan his name out like her life depended on it.

But, **fuck**. Had her hair always been that long? And when exactly had she started filling out v-necks like that? He could feel a particular part of his anatomy throbbing, straining, and weeping against his boxers.

She sat up; obviously unsatisfied with the way he was just standing there, she began to walk towards him. The strain in his jeans grew and he resisted the urge to reach down and adjust himself. There was no need for him to worry about that much longer, however, because the brunette vixen before him had swiftly unbuttoned and unzipped his jeans and let them fall down to his ankles.

Her fingers were creeping further down the rim of his boxers when he finally regained some of his wits and grabbed her wrists tightly, too tightly he was sure, but it could not be helped. She'd hardly done more than lie there and she was driving him _mad_.

She was looking up at him, just like she always did (because of her height). But it was also exactly the opposite of how she always did it. Her dark blue eyes were even darker, more alive and expressive than he'd ever seen them.

She was standing there, her fingers still lightly tucked into the rim of his boxers and his large white hands holding her as he dragged his eyes away from their hands (slowly) back up to her eyes. And then he saw her lick her lips. That was _it_.

He picked her up and tossed her onto his childhood bed, his fingers trembling as he ripped at her shirt, pulling it off of her in record time as he pressed his lips against hers. He was all over her, everywhere at once and she moaned and groaned and gasped and sighed at all the right moments.

He wasn't sure if he had said it aloud or if he had actually barked the command, but a moment later she had rolled out from underneath him and peeled off her tight jeans to reveal a matching hot pink bra and thong set. If he were a lesser man he might have jizzed right then and there in his stupid novelty Spiderman boxers in his stupid childhood room.

He waited for her to unhook her bra and expose more of herself to him before he yanked her back down onto the bed. He had a total disregard for how she liked it at this point, he was going to have his way with her and she was going to take it.

Her fingers pulled off his shirt and she mewled at the feeling of skin on skin. Her lips made a trail down his neck and he growled in response. She laughed and ran her hands down his back and he tugged off her underwear and shoved a finger into her warmth.

It was heaven, and it looked like she quiet agreed. Besides the pleasantness of heat and moisture, he could not help but notice the tightness of her sacred space. His eyes rolled a little as he teased another finger into her. Her head lolled back on his pillows and he shivered _again_.

He rubbed and plunged and buried his face in her breasts and almost beamed when he brought her to orgasm; her _first _orgasm. But certainly not her last as he was suddenly on top of her, his boxers dematerializing in the process as he lined himself up _so ready_ to take this step, so ready to dive head first into her –

* * *

><p>"Bakura, wake the <em>fuck<em> up! You're so disgusting, I can't believe that I put up with you … "

He opened his eyes to the shock of Marik standing all of six inches away from him and he could feel the wetness in his boxers. He wanted to throw some comment his way; be the snide boy that he usually was, but all he could think about was that he was lying in bed with wet sheets and wet boxers and all of that led him to think about _why_.

He must have look absolutely mortified, because Marik dropped the subject and told him that he was going to go ahead to class and that he would take notes so that Bakura could have them later.

He got up a few minutes after he heard the door slam, dropping his boxers and stripping his bed of its sheets. He grabbed a towel off of the hook behind the bedroom door and walked into the bathroom. Unfortunately the cold shower he took did not do much to calm down the raging boner that had appeared as soon as he started trying to analyze the dream.

The Bakuras were very, very vivid dreamers. Dreams stuck with them for days, months, _years_ at a time with absolute perfect clarity. Bakura felt like this might be one of the ones that stuck around for years.

He brushed his hair and got dressed before heading back into the kitchenette to grab a bowl of cereal. He stared down into his cheerios as if they would hold the answer to why he could possibly be dreaming about _her_. Why in the world he would be dreaming about her in such a _provocative_ way.

He hadn't seen her since he had dropped her off back home after the fiasco of a weekend she had spent here. It had been almost a month and while she still texted him, she hadn't called him in a while. It was absolutely strange, but how could that provoke such a dream?

He rubbed his temples and pulled out his phone, scrolling through the contacts searching for some sort of answer. His answer came in the form of a text message from a black haired girl that had been all over him during a pep rally for the intramural soccer team he played for.

_Got some time for me today? My afternoon just cleared up._

Normally, no, he would not have had time for her. He wasn't really into girls with black hair. He was a fan of brunettes. Not any specifically, though. No, not at all …

He texted her back promptly and should have been more surprised when he heard her knocking on his door just a minute later. He shot Marik a quick warning text as he opened the door. She wasted no time in inviting herself in and he wasted no time in undressing her and putting her on her back on the couch.

Everything was going well (which was no surprise for Bakura, really) until his phone rang. He ignored it and kept going, she wasn't a virgin but she wasn't particularly experienced and so he had to do most of the work.

And then his phone rang again.

He ignored it.

It rang again.

He ignored it.

It rang _again_.

His hand shot out and he flipped them over so that the girl – whose name he couldn't be bothered to remember – could keep going while he dealt with the annoying device.

He was about to send the call to voicemail when he saw the caller ID.

_Mika Koyama_.

The phone stopped ringing and sent the call to voicemail again.

He tried to continue, but now there was an itch in the back of his brain. His eyes kept shooting over to the phone.

It rang again.

He answered it.

"Mika?" The girl he had been fucking looked down at him, a mixture of annoyance and mortification on her traditional Japanese features. This was the first time he'd noticed those.

"Hi Bakura," she spoke in a hurry, the words sort of blending together. He could hear the anxiety in her voice.

"Mika, what's wrong?" He pushed the girl aside, Ai or Mai or Seiko or whatever her name was scoffed at him as she threw on her clothes. She was cussing at him, but he ignored her as he heard something else in the background; a group conversation, to be exact.

_Look, I bet she's calling him._

_What's he gonna do? Beat us up through the phone._

_I bet he doesn't even care about her. You hear that Mika?_

_It's so sad; she's so obviously thinks she means something to him._

_I mean, fuck, it's been a whole year. She's such a haughty bitch. _

_I bet she's not even a virgin._

_We should find out. _

"Uh, nothing … nothing is wrong, just … I hadn't called you in a while and –" He could hear the group laughing in the background and he could hear her breathing a little bit harder.

"How far are you from school?"

"What?"

He snarled a little and asked again, "How far are you from the school? What street are you on?"

She told him hurriedly, in a low voice as if she was afraid that they would hear her. He could feel the blood boiling in his veins, he felt a sharp kick in his shin and he waved off the angry girl who stood there staring at him ass naked on his living room couch. He pointed to the door and gave her a look that said "what the fuck are you waiting for?"

She stormed out and he was sure that this was going to harm his reputation on campus, but at the moment there were other things his brain was trying to work out. Who were these fuckers messing with Mika? Why were they messing with her in the first place? And when the fuck was he going to meet them so that he could beat the ever loving shit out of them?

(Why was he so fucking angry?)

"Okay, pretend you're still on the phone with me. I will call you back in two minutes."

He hung up and dialed another number, familiar and yet highly unused.

"Hello?"

His little brother's voice sounded confused, confused and flustered. Right, he had a girlfriend now. "Ryou, I need you to get in your car and go pick up Mika."

"Huh? Why? Where is she?"

Bakura filled him in quickly, giving him directions. He didn't have time to question him now, but he was extra pissed when he heard the recognition in Ryou's voice. _He knew that this was going on_.

He called Mika back and she answered quickly, continuing a conversation that she'd been pretending to have with him. He told her that Ryou was on the way and that he wanted her to have him take her home and that in the morning he would pick her up for school.

What he didn't' tell her is that he'd be there, too.

* * *

><p><strong>Not exactly what I thought this chapter was going to be, but I can't say that I'm all that disappointed either x)<strong>

**Lots of love to _CraftyLion_ and _Akatsuki's Bitch_ :) They make this story worth writing ^_^**

**Let me know what you think!**


	7. Chapter 7

_There is no other one who can take your place_

_I feel happy inside when I see your face_

_I hope you believe me_

_'Cause I speak sincerely_

_and I mean it when I tell you that I need you_

_You're my best friend_

_and I love you, and I love you_

_Yes I do_

_I'm here right beside you_

_I will never leave you_

_and I feel the pain you feel when you start crying_

Weezer – My Best Friend

* * *

><p>Marik looked at Bakura with a mocking grin on his face, "So you're going to go all Prince Charming?"<p>

The white haired twenty year-old frowned at his roommate and took another hit, holding the smoke in before letting it out in a long thin stream, "No, I'm just going to get to the bottom of this. That's all."

Marik looked over at him, his lavender eyes hazy, "Okay, I'll play along, but if you're just going to kick some ass then why don't I go with you? It's not like I can't afford to miss a few classes; I've been really good this semester."

"Why do you need to come?" Bakura wasn't really looking over at Marik anymore; even though he was starting to feel the effects of the joint he and Marik had been sharing there was one thought that rang with clarity in his mind. Well, maybe two. He was wondering why Mika was getting picked on … but then he started wondering how accurate his dreamed up version of Mika naked was.

The blond sighed and stood up from where he'd been seated on the soggy grass, "Look, you can be mister big shit and go take care of it yourself, and I'll stay here and take care of all the girls who will be so heartbroken to find out that you've run off to your little high school lover."

"Oh, piss off."

* * *

><p>After the long drive it felt good to get out of the car and stretch his legs. It felt even better to wake his little brother up with a harsh kick to his back.<p>

"Owwww-!"

"Get the fuck up, I want to know what's going on."

Ryou looked up at his brother with squinted eyes; he had never quite developed his brother's ability to see in dim lighting. "Yuichi, what are you _doing_ here?"

Fighting a grumble at the use of his first name Bakura flicked a light on and crossed his arms, "What's going on with Mika?"

The younger brother rubbed his eyes and sighed, "Alright alright, can I just –"

"No."

"Okay, fine. Uh, well … Okay, look – her friends and their boyfriends have been trying to fix her up with someone for the past two years," he paused to make eye contact with his intimidating older brother, "And she's refused them all. She spends all of her time outside of school studying or playing the seventh wheel to her friends."

"What does this have to do with _anything_?" He was getting annoyed at the thought of her friends setting her up with all these_ boys_.

"Stop interrupting; she's become this prude all of the sudden, but people saw how she was with you and Marik. They've all made up this joke that she was like –" he paused here to gulp, "Well, they're saying that she's probably refusing everybody because she was your private 'easy fuck.'"

The elder boy snarled and Ryou shrunk back, "What the _fuck_ gave them _that_ idea?"

At the risk of further angering his brother Ryou rolled his eyes, "Really? You have no idea? If I didn't know your GPA then I'd assume you were a complete dolt," Ryou stopped as Bakura cracked his knuckles.

"So they're spreading rumors about her being a whore, _my_ whore specifically."

"Yes, although there are some rumors that suggest that it was more of a _three way_ affair."

The elder brother snorted, not that was humorous. "I still don't see why they think that."

"Do you not remember how many parties you took her to? How many times you had her skip class? People notice these things and now they're talking."

Bakura remained silent and glanced down at the digital alarm clock on the nightstand, "You should get dressed; you have to go pick her up soon."

Ryou stood up and stretched, his boxers sagging a little and his white t-shirt crinkled, "Now that you're here, why don't you go get her?"

He immediately regretted the sentence as he felt his brother's fist make contact with his rib cage. "You have to go get her because I don't want her to know that I'm here. I want to get to the bottom of all of this."

"Look Yuichi, I have commitments and unlike _you_ I actually honor them. I have to go pick up Reiko and she lives in the complete opposite direction; my girlfriend isn't going to be very happy if I go pick up _another girl_ instead of her," he crossed his arms in an attempt to look severe and final, but he couldn't quite pull it off the way that his brother could. There were lots of things that his brother could do that he couldn't, and he was not about to let his brother damage one of the things that he _could_ do. His relationship with his girlfriend was actually _important_ to him what with all of his familial relationships being irrevocably damaged and otherwise dysfunctional.

Bakura picked up a picture of Ryou's girlfriend and leered down at it, "Now, now _little brother_ there was a time when you would have said something similar about your friendship with Mika," he set the picture down and took a few meaningful steps towards the boy in front of him, "You go get her and don't worry about your little girlfriend, I'll go get her for you. Fair is fair."

The teen looked unhappy, but he couldn't exactly argue with what his brother had just said, "Fine, she'll be out front by seven thirty. She lives on –"

Bakura smirked and held up his hand, "Oh, I know where she lives; her older sister was _quite_ a delectable thing sophomore year."

* * *

><p>Mika was shifting her weight from one foot to the other, squirming as she waited for Ryou to arrive. It was embarrassing that he had to come pick her up. He hadn't really spoken much to her since he had started dating Reiko. She didn't hate him for it; there was nothing wrong with growing up and developing new relationships. New relationships; now there was a concept. Those boys had been following her home and teasing her for a full month now. It hadn't been as bad in the fall when her friends still walked home with her, but now that cheer had started up again they had to stay after school for practice.<p>

She heard the car before she saw it; both Ryou and Bakura had amazing rides. It was probably their father's attempt to buy their love, especially after everything had gone down ten years ago. The white Lancer (a model two years newer than Bakura's blue one) stopped right in front of her and she heard the doors unlock.

"Hi Ryou," she slipped into the front seat looking for his girlfriend out of the corner of her eye. Mika had a feeling Reiko wasn't very fond of her. "Where's Reiko?"

Ryou put the car into drive and made a u-turn before replying, "Oh, she got a ride with one of her friends today."

She could tell he was lying but settled for folding her hands in her lap, "Oh … well, thanks so much for doing this for me. I mean, it's really not necessary …"

The white haired boy looked over at the girl who had been like a sister to him while he was growing up and felt his heart break a little, "Don't even think about it. I know that my brother is very upset about all of this and I … well, I'm sorry for letting this go on for so long."

"Bakura knows about this?"

Ryou didn't need to look over at her to understand the embarrassment that must have been etched into her features. Instead of saying anything, he reached over and placed his hand on her thigh to give her a comforting squeeze.

The rest of the ride was silent and when they pulled into Ryou's assigned parking lot Reiko was sitting on the fence right beside it. "Thanks again for picking me up, I'll see you two later."

She waved awkwardly as she made her way to her first class where her friends were waiting. She made it through the day with little to no disruptions; her tormentors usually saved that for the walk home. Mika enjoyed herself gossiping with her friends and ignoring the suspicious looks that she was getting; there was some sort of new gossip going around, but she couldn't be bothered to inquire about it.

Well, not until she heard _the name_. "Yeah, did you hear Mika? Supposedly Bakura's back in town, do you know anything about that?"

She gaped at Ami, "No, no I haven't –"

"But you're always talking to him; he must have mentioned it," Minako said as Yuka nodded her agreement.

"Well, no, he didn't mention it. I can text him right now, but I really don't think that he wouldn't have told me if he was here," she pulled out her iPhone and shot him a text. "He should reply soon."

"Oh, of course he will, he is your _boyfriend_ after all," Yuka teased while taking a bite of rice; Mika blushed and looked down at her phone. He'd read the message but he hadn't replied.

* * *

><p>Bakura parked his car on the street that Mika had been on when she had called him the day before and stepped out into the warm spring air. He locked the car and started making his way toward the school, he had spotted a good corner he could hide out in and wait for Mika to come by.<p>

After just twenty minutes he heard footsteps, footsteps and then taunting.

"Come on Mika, stop being such an uptight bitch." He was _so _dead.

"Yeah, let's go to my house, I live right up the street." So was he.

"Hey, hey who said that you two get to have her?" Oh _so_ dead.

"I don't understand why you boys want her," a female voice said in disgust, "She's obviously been well-used."

Another few steps and they'd be passing his location where he was leaning up against the wall, he counted her footsteps and then there she was. He reached out and stopped her as he stepped out from behind the wall and stood at his full height. "Well, well what do we have here?"

"Bakura?"

He couldn't help but smirk at the way his name was cried out in stereo; it was always flattering to be recognized. One of the boys stepped forward, looking around him at Mika, "Really? You went crying to Bakura?"

Mika stood there wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

Bakura pushed the boy back a step, "No. But once I found out I wasn't exactly going to just let this go."

He could hear Mika taking a few tentative steps forward, "Bakura – this, this really isn't necessary … We can just go –"

"Yeah, why don't you two just get out of here?" The boy who had spoken was about Bakura's height and had a mop of black hair falling into his eyes.

Bakura sneered, "Not until you three learn to leave Mika alone. Oh, and you," he pointed at the girl, "You need to get away from these boys before someone starts spreading rumors that you're a whore who only gets off by fucking three guys at a time."

"Hey fuck you man, that's my sister!"

The second tallest boy lunged at him and he heard Mika shriek, but he was prepared and dodged the boy's poorly aimed attack while simultaneously hooking him hard in the jaw. The girl cried out and ran to her brother's side as the black haired boy cracked his knuckles, "So it's a fight you want?"

"No, not at all; the way I see it, we can do it the easy way or the hard way. You leave her alone and I'll leave you alone," he paused to crack his own knuckles, "You continue to bother her and you and I have a problem, and let me assure you that I take care of my problems."

Mika stood there, just a few feet behind Bakura clutching her books and staring at Ichiro who was clutching his bloody jaw. She couldn't see Jiro's face, but she hoped that he would call them off, that they would agree to leave her alone.

That hope shattered when Bakura took a step to the side to dodge a flying fist, with incredibly fast reflexes he managed to spin on his heel and grab the boy by the hair before slamming his face into his knee and throwing him to the ground. As gruesome as the scene was becoming there was no one else on the street with them and Mika was too afraid to call the police. Somewhere deep inside Mika was celebrating the fact that _Bakura_ had come all this way to take care of her.

* * *

><p>"Are you sure you're okay?"<p>

He gave her a stern look and pulled his keys out of the ignition, "I'm fine."

"But you're _bleeding_."

"I've had worse," he huffed leaning his head back on the head rest.

Mika leaned over and swiped a tissue over his brow, one of the boys, she couldn't remember which one, had nailed him pretty hard. Of course, once Bakura had started bleeding he ended the fight rather quickly with some well placed punches.

"You know, if you keep glaring at me like that you're only going to open up the wound again."

"Whatever."

She sat back after cleaning up his forehead, "Thanks for coming to save me."

He looked over at her; she was staring at her lap toying with the bloody tissue. She'd gotten a haircut or something because her bangs were styled differently and were currently obstructing the view of her face. He hadn't really had a good look at her yet, what with the ass kicking and all.

He opened the door and got out of the car, going around to the other side to open her door. She stepped out and looked up at his house, she hadn't been there in a very long time and she secretly wondered if it still smelled the same. He slung his arm around her and escorted her up the steps and inside. Ryou and Reiko were sitting in the family room watching television and laughing together. Reiko stopped laughing when the two walked by and she turned away from Mika.

After Mika had fully cleaned and bandaged the small cut on Bakura's eyebrow he went back into interrogator mode. "What the fuck was that all about Mika, why haven't you told me?"

She turned away from him, leaving the bathroom where Bakura had been sitting on the toilet while she fixed up his wound, and sat down on the bed, "I don't wanna talk about it. Besides, Ryou told you."

"I want to know from you. I want to know why you haven't said anything."

"It's essentially what he told you; and I didn't say anything because it's embarrassing. Why would I want to tell you that people think that you took my virginity and otherwise used me to fulfill your sexual desires? Why would I want you to know that school has sucked since you left? They're stupid anyway."

"So why did you call me yesterday?"

She balked, her fingers buttoning and unbuttoning her Domino High uniform. He didn't hear what she said. He stopped paying attention when he realized that she was laying back, her fingers still playing with the buttons on her coat and her skirt hiked up but still just low enough to cover anything too scandalous – just high enough to let his mind wander. Maybe it was the way the light was filtering in through the window, the only light source in the otherwise dim room, or maybe it was because he kinda really _wanted_ her.

She sat up abruptly, well to him it seemed that way, when he didn't respond for a few minutes. She brushed the hair out of her face and looked up at her friend, "Dude, what's up with you?"

"What?"

He had hardly spoken the word when she tugged on his arm and he let himself be pulled on his bed. She laughed as he stiffened to catch himself and keep himself from putting his full weight on her. He held himself over her for a moment and stared into her pretty blue eyes. Those _pretty_ fucking eyes.

Mika's breath caught in her throat. Her hand was still clamped around Bakura's wrist, the other flat by her side; he was so fucking close. And better than his _room_ still smelling the same, _he _still smelled the same. She felt a familiar desire rise in her veins, rushing through her. _This_ made all of the trouble those boys had been giving her worth it, more than worth it – she had them to _thank_ for it.

Bakura wasn't sure if she was pulling him down or if he was lowering himself onto her of his own accord, at the moment he really didn't care which it was. She was blinking up at him, her eyelids _fluttering_ like the butterflies in his stomach. Fuck the butterflies; it wasn't like he'd never kissed her before. He closed his eyes and closed the gap; he pressed his lips down onto hers and then moment it happened it set something off in _both_ of them.

Her lips responded to his of their own accord; she'd kissed other guys before but they had never elicited this type of response from her. It was fucking innate. It barely registered to either of them that this was their first sober make-out. She clutched his wrist a little tighter as she felt him try and pull his arm away, he grunted but let her have her way as he used his other hand to slide down the left side of her body.

Two heartbeats later and Bakura felt her release her grip on his hand and clutch his shoulders instead. He moved his left hand down her body, gripping her waist. Mika moaned under him and he squeezed her harder; she broke away from his lips for a moment and panted trying to regain her breath. He was in a similar condition, but she could see from the grin on his face that it was far from over. _Perfect_.

She slipped her hands under the collar of his grey v-neck, at first she made contact with just her fingernails, waiting to elicit a response from him, when he let out a ragged breath she gripped his shoulders and kneaded them. He relaxed onto her further and then she felt it, the unmistakable hardness in his jeans. Her cheeks flushed in an annoyingly virginal response, but he couldn't see because he was tugging at the blue bow that was tied around her neck in the required Domino High fashion. He was doing that with his _teeth_.

When he managed to loosen it and free her neck he attacked, his lips priming a spot on her neck before he allowed himself to graze her neck with his teeth. It was so light and so unexpected; she scraped her nails over his shoulder blades a little bit harder and he hissed into her ear, "Fuck."

His fingers rubbed at her hipbones and she was torn between pulling his lips back to her face or letting him give her a hickey. "Bakuuuuraaa …"

He stiffened for a moment and she was worried that she had ruined the moment, instead she felt him lick the shell of her ear, "Yes, Mika?"

Fuck, _fuck_, **fuck_. _**

She pulled his face back to her own staring straight into his eyes as she leaned up to kiss him again. His handsome brown eyes were staring straight at her, not daring to close until she herself closed her own eyes. He gripped her hips more firmly once again and rolled over, pulling her on top of him and listening to her shriek and then the small bought of embarrassed laughter that came afterward.

"I miss you."

That hadn't been what she had wanted to say, but it was close enough; two out of three words wasn't bad.

"I'm right here."

She buried her face into his neck, "Only right now."

"I can stay the weekend?"

She traced his jaw line with her nose feeling the slight stubble, "Would you?"

Instead of giving her ears another taste of his deliciously husky voice he pressed his lips against hers again, his fingers tangled up in her long brown hair holding her against him. Once he was sure that she wasn't going to pull away his fingers danced down her spine and slipped her pink coat off, he ran his palms up and down her arms and he felt her move against him. Mika bit down on his bottom lip (it was slightly plumper than the upper one) and his hips bucked beneath her.

And then her phone rang.

"Fuck it."

"But it's my mom," her voice was thick and breathless.

"_Fuck_ it."

"Bakura," she pulled herself up and off of him going over to try and find her coat, it was darker in the room now that the sun had changed its angle.

"Hello? … Yeah, uh, sorry … No, I came to Ryou's house," Bakura narrowed his eyes at her, she poked her tongue out at him and he settled for sliding his fingers under the hem of her shirt and running them over her abdomen. Her eyelids fluttered, but she kept her composure, "I'll be home in a bit, okay? … Bye."

She looked over at him expectantly, he was leaning his face in his left hand, his right hand still running over the skin of her stomach, "Can you please take me home?"

He looked into her eyes again, before closing his own and withdrawing his hand, "Sure."

They didn't say a word about the events of the day on the drive to her house. When he pulled up to her driveway she leaned over the center console and hugged him tightly, he returned the hug with his left arm and cupped her ass with his right hand. He brushed his nose down her cheekbone and she shivered.

"Thank you for being there for me."

He nodded, his lips millimeters from hers, "Always."

She pulled away and before she closed the door she lowered her head back into the vehicle, "See you tomorrow?"

He grinned at her and shrugged; she rolled her eyes and flipped him off.

Later that night, when she couldn't get to sleep, Mika replayed the afternoon in her head … he was a helluva of a kisser. The best friend she'd ever had. They'd be even better friends if she ever had her way.

* * *

><p><strong>Alright, extra long chapter to make up for all the suspense of the last one :) Thank you to everyone who added me to their Author AlertsStory Alerts - you make my heart melt! And a special thanks to _CraftyLion _(as per usual), _Akatsuki's Bitch_, _julen_, and _darkvampiregirl13_. You all make this story worth writing! **

**Reviews are LOVE.**

**Oh, and your move Crafty ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

_It's so hard to find you_

_I'm standing right behind you_

_The streets are much colder_

_This mean I'm getting older_

_Why would you? How could I?_

_These questions lead to goodbye_

_But now I got my freedom_

_Don't I?_

_I parked my car outside your house_

_Hope that someday you'll come home_

_Seems the woman that I love_

_Is someone that I hardly know_

_And after all this time_

_I finally found a way to be alone_

_I'm terrified to think that I may be losing my mind_

Maroon 5 – Losing My Mind

* * *

><p><em>AN – we're going back and time for a bit here. I thought that this was a nice place to insert some back story – angst-ridden back story about Yuichi and Ryou's mother and father! There are no cannon names for his mother or father so I have chosen names that suit their personalities as far as my story is concerned. I have named their mother 'Haruka' and that means 'distance' and their father shall be named 'Iwao' which means 'stone man.' And since it's been a while, Yuichi is Bakura's first name! Oh, and the part of the story that happens in the present is the day after the day in the last chapter!_

* * *

><p>*Flashback 10 years*<p>

Haruka Bakura tucked her son into bed and turned off the light before shutting the door. Ryou was eight years old now and still liked for his mother to put him to bed with a song. Yuichi was already going through a phase and he was only ten. He had insisted on going to bed _on his own_. Haruka poked her head into his room she smiled gently to hear him snoring away in the darkness. She continued further down the hall to check on her daughter.

Amane was hardly three years old but she was clearly the apple of her mother's eye. She was a miniature version of her, down to the small spattering of freckles along the bridge of her tiny nose. Amane had her mother's gorgeous lavender hair and soft brown eyes, unlike her older brothers who looked like younger versions of their father. Haruka visibly favored her youngest, although Ryou was still very attached to her and very much a "mama's boy."

That was more than likely a result of their father's frequent absences. Iwao Bakura was an archeologist turned curator turned archeologist again. When the boys were young they had lived in England where their father worked on restoring artifacts that he had found in his early years as an archeologist. When a museum in Japan signed the deal to have the exhibit transferred long-term Iwao decided it was time to return to the island he had spent the majority of his life trying to avoid.

Haruka was more than happy to return to her homeland, she was tired of her children speaking more English than Japanese and the way that they were so much like their father in the fact that they considered that foreign land their home. She had never said it aloud, but she considered her boys less Japanese for having been born in England. Iwao loved his boys and made sure that they had proper English upbringings, purposely speaking less Japanese to them when he could get away with it.

Around the time that Haruka had become pregnant with Amane, Iwao started travelling. Perhaps it was because he was tired of staying in one place. Perhaps it was because he missed the musky heat of the Egyptian desert. Or perhaps it was because he had gotten a vasectomy before he left England and had not slept with his wife for months when she announced that she was pregnant. Amane loved Iwao, but she was not his daughter.

Yuichi, being a child of only seven years when Amane was born, pointed out how odd it was that she did not have the light hair that he and his brother shared. Yuichi was always one to be skeptical, and when he saw his father distance himself from his mother, he began to detach himself as well. He buried himself in his studies and made excuses to be alone. Five year-old Ryou, on the other hand, wanted nothing but to be around his mother and the little girl that she had brought into the world.

Ryou _adored_ Amane.

She was small, pink, and quiet. He loved that she would grip his tiny finger in her tinier fist. He had none of the scorn that was typical of a middle child. As Yuichi found ways to get out of being in his mother's presence, Ryou weaseled his way in further and turned a blind eye to the way that his mother favored the little girl over him.

Iwao could not have handled it with the silence of Yuichi or the grace of Ryou. He began drinking heavily when he was in Japan. He would come home drunk and yell at Haruka, slam doors, break glasses and cause a ruckus. He uprooted the family from Osaka and transported them to a small city called Domino. As Yuichi and Ryou later found out, their father had been planning it ever since he found out that his wife was having an affair with the private tutor that she had insisted he hire to teach the boys Japanese.

Yuichi had a problem obeying authority ever since. Ryou learned to be wary of it.

* * *

><p>At ten years old, Yuichi decided to start going by his last name, insisting that <em>everyone<em> who addressed him called him Bakura. Ryou was still very attached to the English way of things and enjoyed the familiarity that came with allowing people to call him by his first name. Mika Koyama had been raised with similar values. Ryou had met her on his first day of school when he accidently spoke English when he introduced himself to the class.

Mika had been a precocious, eloquent child and had spent all of recess and lunch by Ryou's side. She did not have very many friends from what Ryou could see, but he saw that the other kids left her alone and he liked the protection that a friendship with her offered. He also liked that she was pretty with huge blue eyes that stood out in the sea of narrow brown ones. She explained to him that she had to deal with bullying when she was younger because her parents were half American.

While her great-grandfathers had gone off to fight in the World War, her great-grandmothers had stayed behind to mind the children that they already had. Each woman had been forced into prostitution when their villages had been overtaken and had ended up pregnant from some officer or another. Her grandparents (all four of them) had been the result of just such incidences.

Her mother and father had been neighbors in a neighborhood full of children just like them. They had made the decision to move to Domino after they had married and it was all Mika had ever known. There were kids who made fun of her for having blue eyes, and as she got older, there were those who made fun of how wide her hips were getting.

When Ryou was not at home with his mother, he was at Mika's house or she was at his. They were absolutely attached at the hip. Yuichi was at once jealous and grateful for her presence. She kept Ryou away from their awful parents, but he himself had no such escape.

It had been a particularly rainy week when the Bakura family reached a breaking point.

Haruka, tired of living in a strange town with people she did not know, had announced that she was leaving. Iwao went into a fit of rage and began packing her bags for her. Haruka screamed and yelled and made several phone calls. It was very late when a car arrived at their house. Their father had been gone for hours by the time that their mother's lover – their sister's father – had arrived to take them away.

That evening, before they had been put to bed, was the last time that they ever saw their little sister. Their mother's lover had wrecked his car on the highway, just a few miles out of Osaka and he and Amane had died instantly. Haruka lived. Her body was severely injured, but she had survived the accident. Her arms and legs were scarred up as permanent reminders of the life that she would never have and the life that she had left behind.

That same evening Iwao Bakura had renounced his fulltime position as curator at the Domino Museum and purchased a one-way flight to Egypt.

* * *

><p>Yuichi and Ryou had awoken to a home bereft of family. Any semblance of normalcy that their parents had tried to present since they could remember was gone. Ryou mourned openly. He sobbed and insisted that their father buy him dark clothes. His therapist told him to write in a journal and Ryou had been writing to his sister ever since.<p>

Yuichi scorned his mother and father equally. Haruka and Iwao officially divorced and she took her half of the money and ran away to the farthest corner of Japan. Iwao came and went as he pleased, and when he was in Japan he did not stay long. Yuichi had asked his father to take them away from Japan, but Ryou protested. He wanted to stay near his mother, even though he did not know where she had gone or what she was doing. He wanted to stay near the memory of his sister. He wanted to stay where he had made a friend.

Iwao allowed it, mostly because he was too selfish to take his sons with him. He hired a live-in nanny who stayed with the boys until Yuichi turned sixteen and was able to manage the household. It was this, combined with the stress of everyday life as a student and athlete that led Yuichi to become a womanizer who sampled drugs and the party scene in his spare time. His father had caught him a few times when he had been home, but because his grades never suffered he was at a loss as to how to lecture his son about his destructive behavior.

At some point Yuichi found a balance and Ryou had a rock in Mika so they were happy pretending that their mother had died that night along with their little sister and their father was hardly around but he sent money and bought them each a car and so they pretended to be happy with him.

So when Bakura showed up at Mika's doorstep looking completely distraught she had a pretty good idea what was going on. She ran up to his car as soon as he pulled up, grateful that Ryou had called and given her a heads up. He turned off the car and just sat there, staring into space. Mika threw the door open and undid his seatbelt before climbing into his lap.

"My mother …"

"I'm so sorry Bakura, I wish that things hadn't turned out this way," Mika whispered into his neck, her palm pressed to his heart.

"I can't believe that she's been dying this whole time. I can't believe that she's dead now."

His hands were still at his sides and Mika was trying to comfort him but did not know what words to say. She could tell that he had cried at some point, but now there was anger and exhaustion on his face. His mother had been dying and his father had kept her from communicating with her boys – he did not give her a chance to say goodbye. Their mother had left them for a second time, this time much more permanently.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Her voice came out in a whisper; she was worried that her parents would notice that she had climbed out of her window. Iwao had called from Cairo after Haruka's funeral had occurred and told his boys. It had been eleven at night when they got the news that their mother had been dead and buried for over three days.

"No," his voice was raspier than usual and it sent a chill up her spine. "I'm done talking. That's not what I need."

Mika sat back, resting against the steering wheel, one of her legs still awkwardly outside of the car. "What do you need Bakura?"

"I need you, Mika," he looked her dead in the eye, his hands slowly making their way up her arms. "I need you to be _my_ rock this time around."

She nodded, breathless at what he had just said but even more breathless at what he had just suggested.

"Can I take you somewhere? I promise that I'll have you back –"

She pressed a finger to his lips, "Anywhere. Don't worry about my parents."

He nodded and she climbed over the center console and into the passenger's seat.

* * *

><p><strong>Sorry for the long wait - you are all so wonderful and I am so cruel for keeping this from you! <strong>

**Shout outs to those who reviewed: _Yuki_, _Astrid_, _TheAverIn_, _julen_, _Akatsuki's Bitch_ and last but never least the wonderful _CraftyLion_!**

**Where is Bakura taking her ...? I know, and you will all find out very soon ^_^ *cough*sex*cough***

**Reviews are LOVE.**


	9. Chapter 9

_They say that loves a bitch_

_Read my lips_

_I've waited all my life for a bitch like this_

_For a kiss like this_

_Clean up the hotel suite_

_You've made a mess of me_

_You've got me on my knees_

_I'm spinning out_

_I'm tangled in your sheets_

_You've got the best of me_

_We're never coming down_

_But we're coming_

The Summer Set – Love Like This

* * *

><p>Mika stood behind Bakura as he walked up to the front desk of the hotel. He'd driven about an hour out of town before he pulled off the highway and into a nice city that she had visited with her parents before on small family trips. The hotel had a lavish entryway and she felt ridiculously self-conscious in her hastily pulled on jeans and her silk pajama tank top, so much so that Bakura had given her his jacket. She gripped the ends of the sleeves, hiding her hands from view as she stared down at her toes. Her sandals allowed her to see that the red polish was chipped on her left big toe and it frustrated her like nothing ever had – like she could suddenly trace all her troubles back to that imperfectly polished toenail.<p>

Bakura, in the mean time, had one had shoved into his back pocket fidgeting with the foil packages he had hastily grabbed out of his glove compartment while he waited for the bored-looking girl at the front desk to run his credit card and see that he actually had the kind of money it took to stay the night there. Well, his _father_ had the money, he was just in the mood to take advantage of the fact that his father was well off and did not mind spending money to keep his boys happy. Or "happy" – it really did not matter to Iwao, who had lived most of his life believing that they were one and the same.

"Alright, Mr. Bakura, if you'd just sign here then I can give you the keys to your room on the fifth floor," the girl said as she looked around him at the plain-faced Mika. Her blue eyes peeking out from under her dark brown lashes; she could not get a hold of the situation and the way the hotel clerk was looking at her certainly was not helping. Bakura had obviously been distraught – he drove the whole way without breathing a word – but there was something else between them, something absolutely electric and it made her stomach twist in that funny way it did when he was about to kiss her.

"You're all set. You just need to drop you key card off here at the front desk by noon tomorrow. Please enjoy your stay," she went back to her computer screen after sliding the card over to Bakura. He picked the plastic card up and wrapped his arm around Mika's shoulders in order to guide her to the elevators. Once the steel doors closed Mika let out a breath she had not realized she had been holding and leaned back against the wall.

"Sorry to be dragging you around so late at night."

Mika's blue eyes peered into Bakura's brown ones and she saw the humor hidden in them, although it did not register on the rest of his face, she knew he was teasing her. Her lips curled up and she laughed, releasing all of the tension that had embedded itself in her muscles and lighting up Bakura's face in the process. She wormed her hand out of one of the too-long sleeves and gripped his free hand as the elevator dinged. He squeezed back.

The elevator room gave way to a long corridor full of doors and she dutifully followed Bakura to the door that would belong to them for the night. He flicked a light on to reveal a decently sized room, a large king-sized bed was the centerpiece of the room with a dresser holding a large flat-screen television directly in front of it. The bathroom was to the right of the entrance and to the left was a built-in shelf with a coffeepot and the necessary supplies.

Bakura kicked his shoes off and made his way to the bed where he more or less allowed himself to collapse into a heap. Mika watched him for a moment before slipping her sandals off and making her way toward him. When she reached the corner of the bed she peered down at him and he cracked open one smoldering brown eye. She smiled and he gave her a grin but it did not reach his eyes.

"Hey now, I hope you didn't bring me here just so that I can watch you cry. You're not the type, Yuichi. I know how much this sucks, but you've been your own man for so long. You aren't that little boy anymore and you are in such a good place right now otherwise …"

He looked at her for a moment, his fingers again brushing over his pocket, and considered her. She had climbed up on the bed next to him and was propped up on an elbow, her dark brown hair falling over to one side and exposing her pale neck. Her blue eyes burned into him in the dim hotel room light. Her eyes matched the blue of her silk tank top that peaked out from under the overwhelming black jacket that she'd taken from him on their way.

"Mika," he breathed her name as he reached out and pushed one end of his jacked off of her shoulder and pulling it all the way down her arm. She shivered as his warm hand trailed back up her arm to her shoulder and he gripped her there; his fingertips all exerting differing amounts of pressure, as if testing her sensitivity to his touch. She lowered herself onto her now folded elbow and suddenly her blue eyes were parallel with his brown ones.

He released her shoulder and let his hand rest on her neck, his thumb just barely brushing up over the ridge of her jaw. Her breathing was starting to become uneven, even as she tried so very hard to control it. "I need you, Mika."

Her pink tongue shot out of her mouth to wet her lips, buying herself time so that she could muster the focus and energy required to respond to his powerful statement, "I'm right here."

Bakura's lips curled up at the corners and she watched as the devious smirk on his mouth made its way up to his eyes, "Well that's all fine and good, but that's not exactly how I meant it." He took tiny little pauses between each word and she could have sworn his voice had gotten deeper, his accent stronger.

At that moment in time Mika had a decision to make – she could go out on a limb and take the opening he was so obviously giving her or she could play coy. As she pretended to consider the "options" before her, she unbuttoned her jeans. She grinned as his eyes shot down to where her hand was hesitating at her zipper. She was wearing her silk pajama bottoms under her jeans because she had gotten dressed so quickly and they were uncomfortably bunched in her skinny jeans.

She unzipped as she leaned forward, closing the gap between them and whispering the next few words she spoke against his plush lips, "I know _exactly_ what you meant."

His body reacted before he could fully internalize her words, his lips pressed firmly against her own and his hands shot up to pull her over him, tearing the rest of the jacket off of her before going to rest on the small of her back and her neck. She groaned into his mouth as she felt him beneath her, her fingers curled at the edges of his faded navy blue shirt and the tips of her nails scraped his stomach and made him shiver.

He pulled away and seemed to be trying to say something, but she ignored him and her lips found purchase on his neck. "Mika, hold on …"

He rolled her over so quickly that she actually screamed a little bit in surprise, "I just need to do something really quick."

Mika sat up confused as he went over to the discarded jacket and pulled out her cell phone. He stared down at the phone for a moment and she raised a brow at him as he grabbed his phone as well. He flashed her the black screens of their iPhones, "No interruptions this time."

She blushed all the way down to her toes but she smiled all the same, "No interruptions."

He came back over to her and kissed her face gently as he made his way down to her lips, his fingers hooking themselves in her jeans and pulling. She lifted her hips for him and he tugged them off of her legs. He smiled as she tugged at his shirt and pulled it over his head exposing his pale, well-toned chest.

She pulled him back up to her and he put some of his weight on her as he stretched out to cover her body with his. The kissed one another hungrily, their teeth pulling at one another's lips when they tried to sneak in breaths or exhales. The harder they kissed the harder they breathed and their chests pressed tightly together allowed Bakura to notice that Mika hadn't had time to put a bra on before coming outside earlier. He liked that.

Mika was busy running her fingers up and down his back, occasionally feeling brave enough to dip her fingers down the back of his jeans. She liked the little grunts and groans that she got in response, but she particularly loved the way that his hips bucked into hers. On one such exploration her fingers ended up in his back pocket and she found the little foil-wrapped packages that he'd stuffed there earlier. She brought them up to her face and stared at them, her lips stopped moving as the reality of the situation dawned on her.

Bakura, noticing her pause, pulled away and looked up at her hand at what had her so transfixed. She moved her eyes from the condoms over to him and he smirked, "Mika, dear, we're nowhere near ready for those yet." He pulled them from her hand and tossed them onto the bedside table.

"Do we need _all_ of those?"

He let out a hearty laugh, "Darling little Mika, let's see how the night goes, then _you_ can answer that question for me."

Her face colored again, but her eyes darkened and he liked the way she could be herself and be someone he so thoroughly craved at the same time. She kissed him again and he pulled away and pulled down her shorts in the same movement. Her eyes widened as she felt him pull her legs apart wide enough to fit his hand between them, his long fingers pushing their way past her outer folds and touching her most sensitive skin.

His eyes rolled back and his jaw slacked a bit as he felt the extent of the effect he had on her, the heat and the moisture that sang to him. Mika's head lolled back on the pillows and she let out a low moan, "Fuck Bakura –"

He smirked at her and continued to move his fingers over the bundle of nerves between her legs as she groaned and twitched, becoming completely inept under him. Normally he really liked this part, the required foreplay during the first encounter, but right that moment he _loved_ it. She was so responsive to him, her blue eyes opening and closing as small sighs and growls escaped her parted lips.

There was no question to if Mika loved it or not, her fingers wound themselves in his hair and pulled him closer so she could lick the corners of his mouth and kiss the point of his noise as she squeezed her eyes shut and focused on the sensations he was giving her. And then he pulled away and she _mewled_ and her eyes shot open when she felt his hair brushing her thighs and his tongue making a trail up her left thigh.

And then his tongue picked up where his fingers left off and she twitched, her hips shooting up to get him closer, to make the sensation harder, faster. His left hand flew up to her hips and held her down and she groaned as he nipped at her clit in punishment – a punishment that only served to make her moan louder. The fingers of his right hand squeezed her thigh before finding their way inside of her. First one long pale finger and then another. She hardly had any time to contemplate the slight discomfort as his tongue picked up the pace and his left hand crept up her stomach and pinched a nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

He blew out his breath onto her wet, highly sensitive clit and shoved another finger up into her. He probed her gently at first and then spread his fingers out in the tight space, widening her and prepping her for his _very_ erect penis. And then it happened, the way he was using one hand to rub _both_ of her nipples, the was his hot tongue pressed against her clit and the way his long, long fingers felt set off something inside of her that her own explorations never had and the fiercest orgasm she had ever dreamed possible over took her body. She screamed his name as her body convulsed with pleasure, every nerve ending in her body singing as waves of pleasure danced over her senses.

His breaths came hard as he rested his face on her stomach; he was eyeing her hip bone as he wiped his mouth on her hot skin. Her fingers were wound so tightly in his hair that if he were not so fully aroused in that moment he would have been in excruciating pain. Mika was still pulsing gently at her core, milking his fingers as they gently twisted their way out of her tight wetness.

"That was, I don't even believe – fuck, fuck, _fuck_. Bakura …"

He rolled over and began unbuttoning his jeans, finally paying attention to how uncomfortably tight they were against his hardness. He turned his dark gaze on her for a moment and stole her breath away all over again, "Take your shirt off."

She nodded pulling it over her head and sitting up next to him, licking her lips as he exposed his erect penis to her. Before he could stop her and before she could consider the fact that she did not have much experience in cock sucking, she bent her head down to his crotch and licked him from base to tip and made him absolutely shudder. She had wrapped her lips around the tip when he gripped her hair, "Fuck Mika, _fuck_, that's amazing but that's," he paused as she tried to take more of him in her mouth, "**Fuck**_, _that's not what I want most right now."

In a completely audacious move Mika pulled herself off of his dick, her lips making a popping sound as they released his now pinkish-red length. She heard the tearing of foil and she pulled back completely as she saw him roll the condom on. She knew that she should be afraid, maybe even anxious, but all she felt was excitement and desire and lust. She felt the throbbing in her nether regions and she whimpered as he gripped her hips and brought her to him. He was leaning back against the pillows and the headboard and she was positioned right over his lap.

"Lower yourself," he breathed as he gripped her hips tightly in his long fingers. She could feel her skin bruising but it only made the moment more erotic. He was leaving a lot up to her; mostly for fear that he'd take her too quickly should they start with any other position. Desire made her incredibly obedient (and brave) and so she lowered herself down onto him, the slickness between her legs making it easier than she thought that it might have been.

A wonderful noise escaped Bakura's throat as Mika pushed herself all the way down. "_Finally …_"

Her eyes shot up to his closed ones when he growled the word into her ear, "Ugh Bakura …"

She felt his hips roll beneath her and she gripped his shoulders, her nails digging into his taut flesh. "Move Mika, fuck …"

He leaned his face down to hers and captured her lips as she struggled to move, the tender feeling in her lower regions slowly giving way. Not to say that it didn't hurt. She felt her body strain to accommodate him as they moved faster against one another, but the way that he was holding her, the way that he was kissing her, and the way that he was making her feel negated her desire to slow down and focus on pain. He was being so wonderful, he felt so wonderful.

At some point they both realized that there was not enough friction between them and he pulled out of her for a tiny moment so that he could lie beneath her. She dragged her eyes over his body before she lay down over him and he guided himself back inside of her. She moved over him, her body pressed hard against his. Both of the lovers were covered in a thin sheen of sweat as the neared the peak.

He twitched and she lost it, her body disconnecting from her mind. She felt herself convulsing over him, she heard herself screaming into his shoulder, her nails digging into his shoulders. He tried to last, but the way her walls pulled at him made him lose it and he came hard. He gripped her tightly as she went limp over him.

He rolled her over and pulled out of her – an action that caused them both to whimper at the loss – and tossed his condom in the direction of the trash can. He pulled her to him, his fingers ghosting over her skin.

"That was so _fucking_ hot Mika," he grumbled into her ear, his voice coming back to him. She moaned in response, her fingers scratching his scalp. She shivered and he pulled covers over them, but as she pressed herself against him he had a sneaking suspicion that it was not because she was cold. Her lips pressed to his collar bone and grazed over a hickey that she had given him earlier.

She called his name and he turned his face down to look at her; the moment they made eye contact he felt her nails tangle themselves in the white curls of his lower abdomen and he saw the grin on her face.

"Again?"

* * *

><p>Bakura woke up the next morning to blue eyes and long legs tangled up with his own. Mika savored the way her body had folded itself to fit into his, the way he was holding her in a very un-Bakura-like way, sacrificing some of his own comfort for hers. She twisted around to look him straight in the face, the early morning light coming through the curtains.<p>

"Good morning, Yuichi Bakura."

He kissed her forehead in response, "Good morning Mika Koyama."

She felt the hardness between his legs as she pressed herself against him, "One for the road?"

* * *

><p><strong>So sorry for the long wait, but I think it was worth it - no? I hope you liked it!<strong>

**Special thanks to my reviewers, _TheAverIn, Akatsuki's Bitch, julen, _and the one and only _CraftyLion_ :) You all make this story worth writing and I love you!**

**Reviews are LOVE. **


	10. Chapter 10

_When you're stoned, baby, and I am drunk_

_And we make love, it seems a little desolate_

_It's hard sometimes not to look away_

_And think what's the point when I'm having to hold this fire down_

_I think I'll explode if I can't feel this freely now_

_If you won't let me fall for you_

_Then you won't see the best that I would love to do for you_

_Instead you will be missing me when I go_

_Cos' I'm bored of hangin' out in your cold_

Dido - Stoned

* * *

><p>"I can't believe she hasn't told us."<p>

A pause, then, "Of course she's going to tell us."

"If she ever wakes up out of that daze," a third replied.

Mika could hear her friends, she could feel herself chewing on her lunch, but she couldn't manage to stop spacing out long enough to talk to them.

Ami, having had quite enough, decided to pull her friend out of her thoughts with a sharp tug to her hair. "Earth to Mika!"

"What?" It sounded lame, even to her. How was she supposed to tell them that nothing happened with something _happened_?

"Why are you holding out on us?" Minako snapped, her pretty brown eyes set in a glare.

"I'm not holding out on you." She paused to look at each of them. "You all seem pretty informed."

"So it _is_ true?" Yuka asked.

"Well, I guess that's where you'd need me." Mika replied.

"Aren't you going to tell us?!" The three replied in stereo.

"Maybe." She paused to decide exactly what she could say to them without turning this into some sort of blaze of gossip. "Start with a "yes" or "no" question."

"Hmm, okay. Easy one: was Bakura the one who saved you from your tormentors this weekend?" Minako asked, her face showing that she clearly already knew the answer.

"Yes."

"That's it? Just yes?" Ami huffed.

"I feel like something major happened. You always do this when something major happens, Mika." Yuka said, her eyes gleaming.

"Define major." Mika mumbled, her eyes shifting to her wristwatch. Lunch had never been this long in the entire history of high school.

"Major. Like, huge. Like, he asked you to be his girlfriend!" Minako exclaimed (ever the romantic).

"Nope. He didn't ask me that."

"What?!" They shrieked in stereo.

"Well, you wanted answers. No, he didn't ask me to be his girlfriend."

"Then it has to be something bad that happened, right?" Yuka pushed on.

"I did hear from Reiko that Ryou's mother had died. Who even knew that their mother was still around, though?"

Mika shot a sharp look at Ami as the girl finished her sentence. "Their mother did pass away. I guess that is relevant to this conversation, but you don't have to be so callus."

"You slept with him." It wasn't a question that Minako whispered (somehow louder than all the shrieking a few moments ago), it was a fact. Despite her timid voice, she had said it with a certain degree of conviction so that there was no point for Mika to deny it.

All of her friends stopped eating, their faces still as they watched how Mika mechanically swallowed her food. The color that rose in her cheeks was more muted than they had expected it to be, but it led them to believe that they were on the right path.

"Yes. We - we slept together." Mika said her voice quiet but lined with a hint of longing.

"That's still not the big news," Yuka said, ever astute.

"Of course it's the big news." Mika sighed, her eyes shifting around the crowded cafeteria room. Her eyes landed on Ryou and Reiko. They were sitting together a few tables away. They were pressed so close to one another one might have suspected they had had their uniforms sewed together. Her head was leaning on his shoulder. They looked so comfortable and she longed for that. Bakura wasn't that type.

"What are you looking at?" Ami asked, her eyes trying to follow the path of Mika's gaze. "Ryou and Reiko?"

Mika blinked at her friends and they could see the sadness that darkened her blue eyes.

"The big news isn't that you slept with him." Yuka paused and then spoke up, "It's that you are in love with him and you don't think he feels the same."

* * *

><p>"Where have you been all morning?"<p>

Bakura looked at Marik from the corner of his eye as he continued to chug orange juice out of the carton. He made a slight attempt at a shrug and set the juice down back in the refrigerator. "I went for a run."

Marik scoffed and pushed Bakura out of the way as he made his way to the fridge. "Right, in the same pants that you were wearing last night after you skipped dinner with the guys to 'study.'"

"No point in dirtying another pair." It was a half-assed lie, _especially_ for Bakura.

"Uh-huh." Marik poured some milk into a bowl before reaching for the cereal. "I wonder what Mika would think of her valiant savior running around on her."

"I knew I shouldn't have said anything to you. You're such a gossip."

"Look, I'm not saying that you should be monogamous all of a sudden." He paused to slurp and crunch through a large bite of breakfast, "I'm just saying that you've been leading Mika on for years. This is probably a big deal for her."

"Well I didn't tell her to get emotionally involved," Bakura barked back. He had been very irritable these past couple of weeks.

Marik had noticed something was up right away, but had decided to give Bakura the benefit of the doubt. Like he had been saying, Bakura had been leading Mika on for years and he always figured that he wouldn't be so flippant about _it_ when it finally happened.

"I think you forget that Mika is still a girl, you know, despite some of her finer qualities. A girl that was a virgin, a girl that has been one of your closest friends for quite some time, a girl that is probably in lo-"

Bakura slammed the bathroom door so hard that they whole wall shook. The door bounced on its hinges for a moment before settling. Marik heard the shower turn on and sighed. Since when did he have to be the logical one? He set his cereal bowl into the sink and pulled a joint out of the fake Pringles can on top of the fridge.

He lit up and inhaled deeply. This wasn't his shit to deal with, and now that he'd been tossed into the middle of it, he was going to deal with it the best way he knew how. The smoke streamed out of his rounded lips and he grinned as the last of it passed into the air in front of him. Another inhale and he'd be set until lunch.

* * *

><p>Mika stared at her hands, her fingers white as she gripped the rail on the side of her seat on the bus. It was Domino High's annual overnight field trip to the local college (to <em>their<em> college). She finally acknowledged that her fingers hurt and she leaned back into her seat as she rubbed them.

"So you told them we're coming, right Mika?" Ami was grinning her face off, excited that they were going to be spending a night in the girls' dorms. Well, their parents _thought_ that they were going to be spending the night in the girls' dorms.

"I texted them, but they haven't gotten back to me yet. They must have class right now or something."

Her friends took her answer at face value and went back to chattering about the crazy party that they might be attending that night. Mika pulled her phone out of her sweater pocket and scrolled through her contacts. Maybe she should tell them that they were going. Or remind them that it was today. She had mentioned it to Marik when they had spoken a few days earlier.

She hadn't really done more than text Bakura every once in a while to check in or send him some funny link or interesting article he might enjoy. She tapped on his name and contemplated what to say. Somehow, "Hey I forgot to mention that my friends and I are coming for the annual sleepover. They think that you're going to get us into a party. Funny, huh?" didn't seem right. Especially since they hadn't really been together since they had _been together_.

"You don't seem into this, Mika. What's up?" Minako asked her eyes wide and sincere.

"Ah, yeah, you got me." Mika squirmed, tucking her phone back into her pocket. "I just don't know if there's anything fun going on tonight. I don't want to let you guys down."

"I'm sure that Marik and Bakura will have something up their sleeve!" Yuka piped up. She pulled out her makeup bag and looked at herself in her compact. "Is Marik seeing anyone?"

"What about Chiharu?!" Ami squealed, her eyes bugging out.

Mika tuned them out as she went back to her phone. She was about to type up the message that she had been putting off when her phone started vibrating with a phone call. She only had to glance at the blurry picture of one brown eye to know that it was Bakura.

"Hello?"

"_So, are you coming on that school trip today?"_

"Uh, yeah, how did you know?"

"_Marik just remembered about it right now."_

"Oh."

"_So, I guess I'll see you soon?"_

"Well, we have a tour of the school first."

"_Yeah, I'm actually one of the tour guides. Some half-assed promise I made to some –"_

"You're going to be a tour guide?" Her voice was dropping steadily at what he had been about to say.

"_You're okay with that, right?"_

"Why wouldn't I be? I haven't seen you in forever."

"_I've been busy with – class and stuff."_

"I'm sure."

There was silence on his end and she could feel the awkwardness growing. She glanced out the window and noticed that they were at the halfway point.

"We're about an hour out."

"_Oh, well, I guess I'll be seeing you soon."_

He hung up before she could say anything more and she sunk back into the uncomfortable bus seat. Hopefully there wasn't anything to worry about. Maybe she was reading into it too much. She wadded up her sweatshirt and used it as a pillow, her eyes shutting almost automatically. With any luck everything would look better after a nap.

* * *

><p><strong>Back from the dead? So it would seem! I'm actually avoiding a piece for my creative writing class. Whoops. I hope that you enjoyed it. It's kinda filler, but I needed this chapter to set some things into motion. I'm pretty sure where this is going now, so let's see how quickly I can knock it out. <strong>

**Thank you all for waiting for this, I hope that it was worth it. **

**Xx,**

**Red**


	11. Chapter 11

It's like a little piece of heaven

When you stay  
>You make me feel like it's all<br>Okay  
>And now I know that the sun<br>Will only shine  
>When the clouds go away<br>Cause thats how you make me feel  
>Thats how you make me feel today<p>

And you're like a little piece of candy  
>On my tongue<br>You're so much  
>Fun<br>And I flip like a butterfly  
>With one look in your eyes<br>Thats how you make me feel  
>Thats how you make me feel tonight<p>

And I think I like you  
>And I think you like me too<p>

Lets keep dreaming and wishing  
>This way<br>Growups don't take enough time  
>To play<br>Love, and so, it matters at the end of the day  
>That's how you make me feel<br>Thank you for making me feel this way

And I think I like you  
>And I think you like me too<p>

Christina Perri - "I Like You"

* * *

><p>Mika stifled a groan as she followed the single-file line out of the library - blessedly the last building that they had to tour before they went to the dining hall. Bakura hadn't been their assigned tour guide, but the girl leading their tour, Haruki, had decided to join their tours. You know, because, "silly Bakura didn't have time to memorize his script and I promised to help him out."<p>

Ami, Minako and Yuka had all shot her pitiful glances as they endured an afternoon of flirty jokes on Haruki's behalf. She kept throwing eyes at Bakura and Bakura kept sending half-hidden glances over at Mika and otherwise ignored the group of students that he was supposed to be selling the university to. Mika, in turn, studiously ignored them all to the best of her ability.

"Now, if everyone would follow us to the last stop on our tour - that's right! - the dining hall!" Haruki bubbled on but the girls stopped listening.

"What a whore," Ami mock whispered.

"College girls," Minako agreed. The disgust was apparent in her voice but mostly because that's how uptight Minako was most of the time (read: when she was sober).

"Yeah, it's not that big a deal. I-I mean, what was I supposed to expect." Mika paused, trying to find the right way to justify his behavior, more for her own benefit than his. "He's -"

"A total loser," Marik chimed in as he joined the group, completely unnoticed by the tour guides (Bakura was almost literally holding the girl an arm's length away from himself) and chaperones (who were busy speaking to professors about the freedoms of teaching college courses).

"Hey!" Mika jumped into a hug, half tripping the tan boy.

"Hey yourself," he winked at the blue-eyed girl before turning up the charm on her friends. "Ladies."

Variations of honey-toned, "Hi, Marik" sounded from behind Mika.

"Why the sad eyes, Mika?"

"You very well know why! Your best friend over there sucks," Yuka snapped.

"Yeah he's –"

"He's totally not worthy of being Mika's deflowerer," Ami interrupted. "It's such a bummer he's so hot."

Mika's eyes bugged out at Ami's comment, "Hey! That's not exactly public knowledge."

"Oh, I knew – if that's what you're worried about," Marik grinned down at her. He watched the color drain from her face before coming back tenfold, "Hey, don't pass out on me." He pulled out a hip-flask and unscrewed the lid before passing it to her.

Big blue eyes shot him a grateful look as she threw her head back.

"Look at her go!" Minako laughed, already reaching for it to take a gulp of her own.

"You're a godsend, Marik," Mika coughed out, the burn of the vodka still heating her throat. "Please say you'll have dinner with us."

He laughed, taking his flask back and making a face at finding that the girls had passed it around and left it empty, "Yeah. I can do dinner – you know, for moral support."

"You can sit by me!" Ami all but shouted as she linked arms with him.

Mika rolled her eyes but regretted it almost immediately since her eyes locked with Bakura's. He looked like he wanted to walk over to her. His brown eyes were absolutely smoldering and she didn't know what to make of it and on top of all of it the vodka that she'd all but chugged was starting to make her empty stomach burn. The hot beginnings of drunken bliss were tickling the corners of her mind and she kept thinking about Ami's comment. It was too bad that he was so hot because all Mika wanted was him. Him - ungrateful, unkind, undressed.

They were more or less released into the cafeteria and the teens dispursed into the different lines. There were at least eight stations offering cuisine from all regions of the globe. Mika watched as Ami dragged Marik over to the phō line (she had once admitted that she thought watching a guy eat soup was erotic). Minako and Yuka had followed behind and then chosen the Italian station which was really just serving glorified pizza.

Mika went the traditional route - the line for bento boxes wasn't too long and some comfort food sounded good.

"Hello, love."

"Fuck."

"What was that?"

"Oh, silly Bakura - hi!" Mika stuck out her chest and fluttered her lashes but the pout on her lips and the dead look in her eyes told the truth.

Never one to back down right away, Bakura frowned at her. "That's not funny. Mika, aren't you going to give me a proper hello?"

The line moved a step forward and Mika used the moment to consider her response. "I feel that any hello I give you won't satisfy your expectations. I don't think I want to play other woman or unsuspecting girlfriend."

Bakura opened his pale mouth to retort but Mika held up a slim finger, "Oh wait, I'm not your girlfriend."

"What can I get you, miss?"

Mika turned on her heel, her face pink from vodka and Bakura and ordered the first thing on the menu.

"Young man?"

Bakura's eyes shifted down to Mika, watching her back. "I'll have the same, please." He could feel the awkward feelings of guilt and remorse bubbling around in his stomach and he didn't like it. Who was Mika to make him feel this way?

At that very moment she turned her big, blue eyes up at him from under her lashes, "Fuck Mika." Bakura frowned at her, his elegant features darkening. "I never made you any promises and you never made any to me." He grabbed her elbow in a much harsher manner than it might have seemed to anyone who was watching them. "I don't deserve this attitude from you. I'm not going to apologize."

"I didn't expect you to," Mika said. Her eyes focused on the plate she was now holding in her hands and, against her better judgment, she waited for Bakura to be served before moving on to the drink station.

He gave her a look that essentially translated to "well, then?"

"Just because I didn't expect you to doesn't mean that I didn't want you to."

They didn't speak to one another for a long while. Mika found herself following Bakura to the table where Marik and her friends were sitting. There was a large group of boys there, at least three tables had been pushed together to accommodate them all. Ami, Minako and Yuka were smiling brightly. Mika could just imagine the flirty things they'd been saying. College was a time to reinvent yourself, after all.

There were two seats open side by side. One was at the head of the group of tables and the other was to the right. The irony of the seating chart was not lost on Mika or Bakura as he took the head seat.

"Alllriiiight, who's this now?" One of the guys at the table shouted.

Mika's bright eyes flashed up to make eye contact and another boy whistled. "Keeping the exotic one to yourself, huh Bakura?"

Bakura watched as she flinched, not liking the attention. (Not liking the insinuation?) But then he saw her turn and smile at him, her eyes devious.

Mika opened her mouth to speak, ready to make a point about her relationship status with the white-haired womanizer. "What makes you think that -"

"Nah, Bakura was just catching her up to speed. Mika is totally with me," Marik joked, effectively cutting her off and moving the attention away from Bakura who was leering at Mika.

Mika tossed a sugar packet at Marik's head and the conversation shifted to what was going on later that night.

"The boys have invited us to their party tonight, Mika!" Yuka chimed.

"Yeah, I told you that Marik would pull through!" Ami said, her flirty lashes fluttering at the amethyst-eyed boy.

Minako was hardly paying any attention at all, her brown eyes focused on one of the boys at the table. He was grinning at her like they already shared some sort of secret. Had Mika cared to watch them more closely she might have noticed that Minako was absolutely love struck (which wasn't unusual but usually didn't end well.)

Bakura watched as Mika interacted with the guys. He watched them watch her.

She certainly wasn't sixteen anymore.

* * *

><p>Dinner began winding down and guys started getting out of their seats heading off to late classes or going to nap before the weekly Friday night festivities started up.<p>

"Let's go get ready for tonight, girls!" Yuka announced once an awkward silence fell upon the table.

"Yeah! What're your room assignments again? I hope we're all near each other!" Minako said as she pulled out her itinerary from her purse.

"I'm in Bluebird 326," Ami stated, holding up her paper.

"I'm in 328!" Yuka cheered, jumping out of her chair and hugging Ami.

"Me, too! 328!" Minako added. The three were practically foaming at the mouth.

They all turned at once to Mika who was staring at her letter with wide eyes.

"So, where are you staying?" Yuka asked, annoyed that she wasn't joining in on the cheer.

"Mockingbird 252."

"That's on the other side of the campus!" Minako complained.

"Oh, that's right, how did you pull that one off again, Bakura?" Marik asked, his eyes gleaming.

Bakura looked pointedly at Mika, "I did someone the favor of being a tour guide and I got a favor in return."

"Ohmygawd."

Mika turned and glared at her friends who were all on the precipice of saying something horribly embarrassing.

"Right, well, anyway, I have to get to class. Ladies, I can point you in the right direction, if you like?"

"Yeah, let's go." Ami said, her eyes still darting between Mika and Bakura.

"Have fun, lovebirds!" Yuka shouted as they all hurried to keep up with Marik's long strides.

"I really need a smoke."

Bakura stood up and pulled a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his pocket. His entire posture was provocative. "This is the best I can do for you right now."

It seemed like he meant more than the cigarettes.

Mika stood up and slid her arms into her backpack straps. She tried hard to avoid the piercing brown eyes watching her.

She looked up into his eyes, her voice apologetic. "I'll take what I can get."

* * *

><p>The walk up to the dormitory was slow and quiet except for when Mika asked Bakura for a second cigarette and he passed her his instead.<p>

They walked close to one another on the path, the sun was barely visible over the horizon and the golden-red light cast everything in a forgiving glow.

"Thanks."

Bakura looked down at Mika, "I didn't expect you to forgive me so soon."

"I didn't think you'd do something so nice."

"It wasn't selfless."

Mika stayed quiet. Typical Bakura to ruin a moment like that.

"So you are keeping me to yourself."

He laughed as he swiped his key card in the lock. "Something like that."

* * *

><p>The room was much like she remembered. "Classically messy" is what she had called it on one of her previous visits.<p>

She dropped her bag on the ground and turned on her heel. Their chests were pressed against one another - his broad and firm, hers soft and inviting.

It took him half a heartbeat to lean down the couple of inches it took to bring his mouth to hers.

Mika's fingers threaded through his soft white hair and he groaned as she bit down on his lower lip, gently tugging.

She felt his hands as he ghosted them over her body until they found their favorite places. His right hand curled around the curve of her bottom and the other squeezed her right hip. The way he was dragging his thumb over her hipbone was making her dizzy with desire.

There was a moment of hesitation as Mika drew back, her eyes turning up to search Bakura's. His eyes were closed and the intimacy of the moment made her swoon.

"What's wrong?" The question caught her off guard, mostly because the wonderfully breathy voice was in her ear instead of ghosting over her mouth like she had expected.

"Did you sleep with her?"

His nose was in her hair as he replied, "With who?"

"The girl who did you the favor -" Mika shivered as his fingers wandered over the curve of her back under her clothes. "The tour guide."

"Mika, really? Right now?" He was slowly walking her to the bedroom. Once he had her on a flat surface she'd be more cooperative.

Her mouth was back on his, hormones and a long-repressed desire winning out momentarily. He laid her onto the bed, crawling over her like a predator.

"Okay, don't tell me. But tell me how many? Between now and when you were with me?"

"What's it matter?" His question was muffled as he had unzipped her jeans and was running his tongue over her barely covered hipbone.

"It just does."

"Mika."

"Bakura."

"Mika."

"Yuichi."

He growled against her neck, pulling his face back to look her in the eyes. Those damned blue eyes.

"Why?"

"Please, just tell me."

"Get out of my bed."

"What?"

"You ruined it. Get out of my bed. I don't want you anymore."

Mika stared at him, her eyes tearing up despite her trying to will the moisture away. "Bakura, I-"

"I said get out!" He shoved her hard and she fell off the bed. Her shin made a terrible sound as it banged on the corner of the desk that was situated between Marik and Bakura's beds.

Bakura watched her with steely eyes from his perch on the bed. Mika sat on the floor hugging her leg to herself trying to contain the pain.

"I feel that any response I give you won't satisfy your expectations. I don't think I want to play perfect lover. I'm not. If I told you the number was zero you wouldn't believe me and if I said ten you'd never let me touch you again."

It stung to have her words thrown back at her. It hurt even more to see his face twisted in anger in the dim light filtering in through the blinds. She didn't have the courage to ask which was the lie. She could feel the heat running down her shin and the back of her throat was singed by the words she couldn't say.

"I need to shower." It was a stupid thing to say. She didn't need to shower. Mika got up onto her feet and limped over to the bathroom. She peeled her clothes off and winced as her jeans scraped against her rapidly bruising shin. There was a small trickle of blood but it was otherwise fine.

As she heard the pipes groan and listened to the water hit the porcelain floor she remembered that Marik had a healthy stash of pills. Her fingers trembled as she reached for the bottle of Xanax in the medicine cabinet. Just one would take the edge off. It would make her feel better about what had just happened - feel better about what hadn't happened.

Just as she plucked the pill from the little orange bottle she heard the crash of a glass against the floor followed by snarled words muffled by the pounding in her head and the rushing water.

She swallowed the pill down quickly, stumbling into the shower and wishing she had thought to grab some vodka on her way in.

* * *

><p>By the time Mika finished showering her whole body was humming with a pleasant numbness. Her shin wasn't even bothering her.<p>

As she pulled back the shower curtain she realized that she'd forgotten to grab a towel. She stood there staring at the pile of clothes she'd taken off earlier trying to decide if she really wanted to dry herself off with a tank top.

The hamper in the corner looked more promising and so she walked over and pulled out a shirt. Bakura's shirt. Bakura's hamper. Crap.

She pulled it over her head and tugged it down. It covered her ass, but just barely. "You can do this. No. Big. Deal."

She pushed the door open trying to remember that before the artificial numbness she was currently enjoying she was ... Heartbroken? Did it count as heartbroken when you weren't officially in love?

Bakura was sitting on the couch with an almost empty bottle of whiskey. Her heart skipped a beat. Yup. It counted.

He didn't look up from the TV. There was some sort of soccer game on but, from the way his eyes were glazed over, it was obvious he wasn't watching it.

Bakura watched her as she went back and forth. She didn't say anything to him until she sat down on the coffee table in front of him. Mika's blue eyes were downcast and her overall posture exuded a timidness that he hadn't seen since she was ten years old and he'd shoved her into the sandbox because she was taking Ryou's side in an argument he couldn't remember anymore.

He did remember the big, ugly bruise she got on her arm from landing on a little boy's firetruck. Her parents had complained to his parents and he spent the rest of his afternoons at soccer camp.

When he aged out of soccer camp and started playing on the high school team he had been able to forget about Mika. When he saw her again her freshman year all done up for school (not the way she looked the rare times she and Ryou would hang out at the Bakura house) he was awestruck. Four and a half years had served her very well. He felt his blood rush down, the tightness in his jeans bordering on uncomfortable at the thought.

His girlfriend of the time hadn't liked that, so he waited it out. When she turned sixteen and he was a senior he knew it was a "now or never situation." Maybe he should have left it at never.

But he wouldn't trade the night he had with her at the hotel for anything. Teenage dreams and all that.

"Bakura?"

He blinked at her. She must have been saying something. "What?" His voice was more gruff than he had meant for it to be, probably because he'd been drinking whiskey straight for the better part of an hour.

Mika watched him, slowly leaning closer. "I just said I was sorry." She paused to play with the hem of her lavender baby-doll top, "I shouldn't have brought it up like that."

She watched him watch her. His eyes slowly making their way up to her face. It was enough to make her fidget despite the Xanax humming through her veins.

"Can I have some?" She pointed to the bottle of whiskey and he nodded, his eyes searching her face for god only knew what.

She had to put her head almost all the way back to drink from the bottle and when the rush of caramel colored liquid flowed out faster then she expected, it spilled out of the corner of her mouth. She felt Bakura reach out and wipe it away with his long, warm fingers.

Mika set the bottle down a lot harder than she meant to, her mind swimming. "You are so fucking hot."

Bakura felt himself smile before he even had the chance to stifle it.

"I really am sorry. Don't be mad at me." She blinked her eyes at him and watched his face soften.

"I know." She smiled at his version of an apology. It hadn't changed since she'd met him. "I'm not anymore."

She tipped the bottle of whiskey back again and took a long drink, more careful not to spill this time. Bakura's fingers were resting at her neck and it was all she could do to focus on the hot burn of the alcohol.

She set the bottle down, coughing at the burn and the dirty thoughts that were running through her mind.

Her navy blue eyes opened and were met with the deep brown of Bakura's. Her pupils were dilated and his sclera were red but neither one of them noticed the drug-induced imperfections.

"I don't care if you slept with her. Or how many you slept with." Mika leaned forward and he pulled her into his lap. "I don't care because right now," she paused and leaned in close, her lips brushing his ear. "Because right now, you're only thinking about me."

Her lips had just made contact with his when they heard the lock mechanism in the door whir. Marik was back.

"Oh, ew. I though you two would be - what the fuck happened to your leg?!"

When Marik pointed out her bruised shin she cursed herself for not bringing more than one pair of jeans. Her black yoga pants were fitted and ended at her knees.

Mika leaned back and away from Bakura, lifting the bottle of whiskey to her lips and Marik frowned. Bakura adjusted Mika in his lap so that instead of straddling him she was reclining against him. "She's clumsy as ever."

Lavender eyes locked with her blue ones and he could see the lie in them. "I fell off the bed. Your furniture was trying to kill me."

"Whatever. I'm going to take a quick shower, we have to get going soon."

* * *

><p>The air was crisp as they walked down the tree lined sidewalk. Mika was bubbly, the whiskey overriding the quiet that the Xanax had brought on. Her pupils were blown up and her blue irises were thin halos around the scandalous dark centers.<p>

"You two are soooo hot, aren't they soooo hot Mika?" Ami flew into another giggle fit, her cheeks red at her own perversion.

"You're not even drunk!" Minako chastised. Her dark hair was pulled back into a sleek ponytail and she'd brought out the fake lashes.

Yuka, who had been basking in the glow of the attention of some guy named Kai who'd joined them as they walked toward the clubhouse, pouted as his attention was diverted to what Ami was talking about.

Marik and Bakura, who had been walking beside Mika just a moment ago, had taken off at a quick sprint. They had turned a corner in the distance and disappeared.

And then the trees started rustling.

Kai spoke up and said that he knew where they were going and everyone went back to their quiet chatter. Yuka with Kai and Minako bickering with Ami behind big grins. Mika, on the other hand, hung back from the group, confused as to why the two had run off in the middle of their conversation.

She pulled her jacket - Bakura's intramural soccer jacket - around her shoulders more tightly. The air was colder now that she wasn't flanked by the two college sophomores.

She closed her eyes as the street lamps lit up, her arm reaching up to shield her face. She caught the scent of Baker's sweater and groaned. The hunter green sleeve smelled like grass stains, cigarettes, and the expensive Armani cologne that Ryou had bought him for his last birthday.

The sweater smelled fucking sexy.

There was a rustle in the trees and Ami shrieked, grabbing onto Kai when Marik and Bakura emerged looking quite amused. Yuka pouted as she tugged on Ami's arm, trying to wretch her off of Kai.

Minako rolled her eyes, turning to face Mika, but stopped when she noticed that she was gone. Marik was standing there instead, his back turned to her. He was staring at the group of trees, his shoulders raised as though he were preparing to yell.

Mika stared up at Bakura, his big, pale hand was wrapped tightly over her mouth preventing her from shouting out. "Be quiet."

She nodded, her blue eyes locked in place with his mischievous brown ones. He kept one hand firmly around her waist as he reached into his pocket with the other.

In the dim light that filtered through the trees Mika saw the small pipe and grinned at her captor. "I thought you were gonna follow us," he whispered as he handed it to her.

"I would have if I knew what the plan was." She paused as he lit it for her and she inhaled. The smoke was acrid, but she knew the high would be worth it - especially if she was going to keep her calm with Bakura all night.

"I just figured you knew I wouldn't be furnishing your little group of friends with drugs and alcohol all weekend."

Mika let out the smoke in a slow, thin stream like Bakura had taught her to. "Like you're hurting for money."

"Times are tough," he joked. Weed always put him in good spirits.

"Then why share with me?"

He leaned forward, his eyes dark in the dim light, "Because." He pulled away, his eyes still on her face.

Her eyes narrowed at him, "Because ...?"

"I like you."

There was a breathless moment where Mika felt like she might fall over, her heart beating much too fast. Bakura took the pipe from her hands and tucked it away, his eyes avoiding hers to the best of his ability.

"We should catch up to everyone, come on." He held his hand out to her and picked his way back to the sidewalk.

* * *

><p>They had been at the party for over an hour and everyone had been making the most of it. There were red cups galore and there were large crowds around tables where drinking games were taking place. Just a couple of years ago Mika would have never thought that she would find herself in a place like this. She had never been interested in the party scene, but as soon as Bakura became her personal tour guide, she found it hard to stay away.<p>

He smiled at her as he twisted the bottle cap off of a fresh beer for her. It was icy cold as she took it from him, "Thanks."

Bakura nodded, and seemed like he was about to say something when he was interrupted.

"Bakura! Hi -" the girly voice stopped when she stood in front of them, "Oh, who's this?"

Mika looked at the college girl, her hair was dyed dark blonde and her blue contacts were obvious even through the drunken haze that she was enjoying. Mika frowned, but did not say anything. She was going to let Bakura handle this.

"Is this your sister or something?" She asked, her eyes going from scrutinizing Mika back to Bakura.

Mika's dark blue eyes searched Bakura's face, he looked like he was really thinking through whatever he was about to say. Suddenly, Mika did not want to let him handle it. She could not deal with him saying that she was his sister or, worse, that she was just some high school kid on an overnight tour.

"Yeah, I'm his sis-"

"No." He shot Mika a hard look, "No, she isn't my sister."

"Oh, umm ..." The girl's face was contorted in confusion, her cheeks turning red from embarrassment.

"This is Mika, she's my girlfriend."

The girl's eyes snapped to Bakura's face and Mika took the chance to compose herself. Maybe he was just saying that because he thought that the girl was annoying.

The girl huffed and stepped around them into the kitchen. Mika kept her eyes downcast, pretending to read the label on her beer. Pretending that she was sure that he was serious. That he was her boyfriend.

"Mika, Bakura, over here!" Marik was sitting on a barstool at a table on the patio, Ami was sitting between his legs. "We're starting up a new game, get your asses over here!"

The night went by even faster once they got a good drunk on. They played a few games with Marik before someone turned the lights off and turned twinkle lights on and started blasting music. Mika basked in their glow and the fact that Bakura had introduced her as his girlfriend to a few other people throughout the night. The grin that Marik gave her the first time he heard it reassured her that maybe there was a reason to believe that it was more that just Bakura's intoxication talking.

"I love this song!" Mika shouted, her eyes bright as she tugged on Bakura's arm. "Please!" She pleaded over the music.

He smiled at her, his lips looking soft and inviting. "Fine." His tone was gruff, but his gleaming eyes told her it was all just a front.

The pushed their way onto the makeshift dancefloor (the clubhouse living room). He held her close, the grip he had on her shoulders firm, possessive. The bass thrummed through them, making their chests vibrate. Mika reached over her head to curl her fingers in Bakura's hair, she rocked her hips back and forth to the beat and he slid his hands from her shoulders down to her hips.

"Fuck." The word was growled into her ear as he tucked his face into her neck. She could smell his breath as he spoke and she shivered, pressing against him harder.

Song after song blended together, the beat of the bass varying only slightly. Mika could feel Bakura's erection hard against her back, she could feel the grip on her hips get tighter.

She turned in his arms, her eyes meeting his. "Should we get out of here?" Mika felt brave asking, when it came to these romantic exchanges she usually took the back seat. Most of the time she let him decide if he wanted her, afraid of the idea of rejection.

But tonight was different. Whether he meant it or not, tonight she was his girlfriend. Girlfriends had the right to ask their boyfriends if they were ready to go home.

"Hell yes," he purred, slipping his hands under her thighs and picking her up.

* * *

><p>Once they were out in the cool night air he set her down. The path that they had walked earlier stretched out before them.<p>

"What about Marik?" Mika asked her blue eyes focused on Bakura's fingers interlaced with hers.

"What about him?"

"Is he ... Coming home tonight?"

Bakura grinned, his perfect white teeth gleaming, "He won't bother us." He delighted in the way that Mika's face flushed at his words. He could hardly wait to make her face flush from his actions.

* * *

><p>Mika's head was swimming as Bakura walked her through the dorm in the dark. He had managed to pull her sweatshirt off and was working his way into her pants when he finally got her onto the bed.<p>

"Bakura," Mika groaned as he stepped back from her, all she could hear was the sound of his clothes rustling and her own heart beating.

"I'm coming doll, don't you worry."

Mika moaned again, the sound of his voice in the dark was a dangerous thing. Bakura could barely contain his own groan as he watched her writhing with desire and the remaining intoxication from their partying. He crawled up over her on the narrow twin bed. "Come here, love."

She wrapped her arms up around his shoulders, his bare skin was hot and she wanted to consume it. She wanted him to consume her. His lips found her neck and she dug her fingers into his scalp, drawing him closer. "You're the best." It was a special kind of euphoria to have him lie above her, his eyes filled with desire.

It was enough to give her flashbacks to her first time.

He chuckled into her hair, his tongue tracing the shell of her ear, burning her. "So you've said before."

"Mmhmm," she agreed as she slipped her hands down his boxers. She squeezed his ass and he thrust into her hips, into where she wanted him most. "But you said you liked me."

His fingers pushed her panties aside, her yoga pants having disappeared without her notice. "Of course I do."

Her legs wrapped around his feeling the coarse hair against her own smooth skin gave her shivers. "That feels so good!" She shifted her hips beneath him, her lips on his. "How much do you like me?"

He rolled them onto their sides, "Mika." His tone was warning, but his actions were playful. He had pulled himself down her body, his lips torturing her hipbone as his fingers toyed with the lacy edge of her panties.

"Fuck." Her breathing was shallow and the word was gasped out as though he were squeezing her tight. "I - I, Bakura, mmm."

"Yes?" He was hovering above her naked chest, his chin resting between her breasts.

"I just," She lifted her head to look at him right as he took her left nipple into his mouth. "I don't want this to ever stop."

He laughed then, sounding almost giddy as he dragged his tongue through the valley of her breasts and claimed her right nipple. "Well, I'm sure something can be arranged about that."

She slipped her hand between their bodies and gripped him, suddenly needing for him to be inside of her. She needed this moment, this day, to be real.

"Mika, ugh." Bakura growled into her neck as he pulled himself up. He reached over to his desk and pulled out a condom, wasting no time in ripping it open and putting it on.

Mika sat up to watch, her pupils still dominated her eyes and she looked devilishly good. He pushed her back against the mattress, leaning down and catching her lips right as he thrust into her.

Their reaction was exactly the same. They moaned into one another's mouths, feet brushing together and eyes rolling back under fluttering eyelids.

He moved faster, unable to stop himself despite knowing this was really only her second time.

Mika sensed his moment of hesitation and acted before it consumed him. She bit into his shoulder to muffle a moan before blurting out the first thing that came to mind, the one thing she knew from experience would make him go all night.

"Bakura, baby, fuck me." She paused to gasp in a breath, "Make me forget my name. Make sure I feel you tomorrow when I wake up." His pace slowed for a moment to catch her eyes. "I'll do the same for you, I swear."

In that instant his cock pulsed inside of her just as he completed his thrust. Her muscles contracted hard and she couldn't contain the scream of pleasure that spilled forth from her mouth.

"Fuck, shhh Mika." His hand flew up to cover her mouth as his head bent down to rest in the curve of her neck. He cursed his way through his release, allowing his words to be muffled by her thick brown hair.

As soon as Bakura regained his wits he sat up, ignoring the head rush it gave him and plucked another condom out of the drawer. Mika was on the fringe of going comatose when he pulled her up.

"Bakura!" Her shriek made him want her all the more. "What?"

"Get on all fours, I'm going to make sure you feel me for the rest of this fucking month."

"Shit," she gasped as he dipped into her, his hot chest pressed against her back. "I, I love -"

"Quiet now, love, don't ruin it." His voice was rushed, low. He sounded nervous, but his cocky movements convinced her otherwise.

Mika bit her tongue and looked over her shoulder, meeting his eyes. Maybe he would keep her from saying it, but that didn't mean he had not understood.

She licked her lips as he leaned down to kiss her. No words needed.

* * *

><p>Mika was floating on a sea of pleasure, her body was fabulously fatigued, her eyes sealed shut with exhaustion. The only problem was that she felt very nauseous. Hours of recreational drug use and alcohol consumption left her beyond dehydrated - not to mention the exercise she and Bakura had participated in.<p>

When slow, measured breaths were no longer cutting it she felt the bile rise in her throat. Mika shot up straight, which only resulted in making the room spin. She made a small croaking sound as she hopped off the bed, lunging for the trash can in the corner.

"Fuck, Mika -" She heard him get up, the gravelly tone of his voice not lost on her despite the gross situation she currently found herself in. The sheets rustled and soon Bakura was hunched behind her, pulling her hair back. "You're so lucky you didn't puke on me."

"Shut u-ugh," She wretched again, her stomach heaving. "Shut up."

He laughed, hard. "You're disgusting. This fucking reeks."

Mika frowned, looking over her shoulder. "Sorry. Totally not cute, huh?"

"Not even a little." He deadpanned, he seemed to be holding up just fine. Maybe he had a stronger stomach - or maybe he knew when to stop drinking. "Can you walk? You need a shower."

"Uh," her eyes tried to focus on the shape of his eyebrows, her vision blurring in and out. "You're totally sideways."

He laughed again, his warm hands coming around her, "Alright. Here we go."

"Slowly - please!" Her voice was breathy and it incited a physiological response in Bakura.

He cradled her close, "That's not what you said earlier."

Mika gagged, her eyes watering, "Bakura - soooo not the time."

"Boo." He teased as he sat her down on the shower floor. He stepped back for a moment and turned the spray on - cold.

"Ahh! Fuck Baku-ugh," she wretched into the trash can even harder as he flipped the light on.

"Shit, no lights." He groaned, his hands flying up to cover his eyes. "Let's get you clean."

* * *

><p>Bakura was on his back, eyes closed. Mika was brushing her fingers through her hair, her body felt raw. "Your shirts are all so comfortable. I wanna sleep forever."<p>

His chuckle made her giggle. "Okay, Sleeping Beauty, come here." He pulled her down gently, his grip borderline loving. Mika sighed contentedly as she lay down beside him.

"Bakura, I-" He silenced her with a kiss, long and slow.

"It's never going to be better for you. No one will ever make you feel more." There was a hint of apology in his tone. "I'm it for you. We're it."

"How do you know?"

"Because it's never felt anywhere near quite as good with anyone else for me." His voice was sleepy and his pupils had overtaken his brown irises hours ago. Mika's mind was hazy and she wished with all her heart that she would remember his words in the morning.

"Get on your stomach, doll. I want to see your pretty eyes tomorrow."

Mika was awestruck. She rolled onto her stomach beside Bakura, pulling the covers up and letting her hand rest on the curve between his back and his butt. She turned her face to watch as his back rose and fell with each even breath he took.

"Yuichi Bakura, I love you, too."

As she closed her eyes she felt him wrap an arm around her shoulders. He pulled her in close and she fell asleep wondering if maybe he had heard her after all.

* * *

><p>The End.<p>

* * *

><p>Hey there, giant hiatus. That was the FINAL chapter of Three's A Crowd. I hope that you all loved it as much as I loved writing it - and I hope that you don't all hate me. This was super challenging for me because I didn't know how I wanted to end it. I didn't want it to be predictable but I didn't want it to be a tragedy. Let me know what you all think in the comments (those of you who stuck around)!<p>

I love you all. Forever.

xx,

Red


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